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January 14, 2026BMJ OpenOpen Access

Which medical subspecialties use qualitative research? A bibliometric analysis

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Authors

MGMatthew GittusASAnthea SuttonLLLukasz Lagojda

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Overview

Bibliometric analysis reveals trends in qualitative research across medical subspecialties, indicating under-representation and varying adherence to reporting standards.

Key Points

  • This review explores the trends and adherence to reporting standards in qualitative research across medical subspecialties.
  • Conducted a longitudinal bibliometric review of qualitative publications from Ovid Medline, Embase, and Emcare.
  • Analyzed qualitative research published between 2000 and 2024 across 12 medical subspecialties.
  • Assessed adherence to reporting standards in a random sample of publications.
  • From 2000 to 2024, 715,471 qualitative studies were published, representing 1.36% of all studies.
  • Highest numbers of studies were in neurology (116,835) and oncology (106,360).
  • Infectious diseases had the highest proportion of qualitative studies at 4.07% relative to all studies.
  • Annual proportion of qualitative research increased from 0.64% to 1.95% over the study period.
  • Good adherence to reporting standards was observed, but issues with positionality and reflexivity were noted.

Cite This Study

Gittus et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6966f30613bf7a6f02c0083ehttps://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2025-109320
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Also Consider

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  1. 1The range and reach of qualitative research in neurosurgery: A scoping review2025
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  4. 4Mapping Qualitative Research in Social Sciences and Humanities: A Bibliometric Review2026
  5. 5Perceptions, challenges, and opportunities of qualitative research among inexperienced medical academics2025 · 3 citations