This paper is in the following e-collection/theme issue:

Research Letter (86) Publication Behavior, Journalogy, Scientometrics and Research Issues in Dermatology (29) Scientometrics, Infometrics, and Altmetrics (95)

Published on in Vol 5, No 2 (2022): Apr-Jun

Preprints (earlier versions) of this paper are available at https://preprints.jmir.org/preprint/37256, first published .
Top Skin-of-Color Publications in Dermatology

Top Skin-of-Color Publications in Dermatology

Top Skin-of-Color Publications in Dermatology

Authors of this article:

Benjamin R Cooper1 Author Orcid Image ;   Jaclyn B Anderson2 Author Orcid Image ;   Melissa R Laughter3 Author Orcid Image ;   Colby L Presley4 Author Orcid Image ;   J Mark Albrecht5 Author Orcid Image ;   Robert P Dellavalle6, 7, 8 Author Orcid Image
Article Authors Cited by Tweetations (3) Metrics

    Research Letter

    1College of Osteopathic Medicine, Rocky Vista University, Parker, CO, United States

    2Department of Pathology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, United States

    3Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, United States

    4Division of Dermatology, Lehigh Valley Health Network, Allentown, PA, United States

    5School of Medicine, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, United States

    6Department of Dermatology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States

    7Department of Epidemiology, Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, United States

    8Dermatology Service, Rocky Mountain Regional Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Aurora, CO, United States

    Corresponding Author:

    Robert P Dellavalle, MSPH, MD, PhD

    Dermatology Service

    Rocky Mountain Regional Veterans Affairs Medical Center

    1700 N Wheeling St, Rm E1-342

    Aurora, CO, 80045

    United States

    Phone: 1 7208575562

    Email: robert.dellavalle@cuanschutz.edu




    Tools such as the Altmetric Attention Score (AAS) and Web of Science (WoS) allow researchers to qualify their work’s impact. WoS uses publication citation counts and is often utilized in academia, while the AAS analyzes online media attention to determine the impact of research [1].


    Using Altmetric Explorer to obtain an article’s AAS and WoS to measure an article’s citation count, the top 50 papers from each search engine were collected using the keywords “skin of color” and “dermatology.” An article’s mention in news outlets and on blogs and Twitter were recorded from Altmetric Explorer as well as whether these mentions came from members of the public or practitioners; this we defined as metrics indicative of online media “attention.” The mean (SD), 95% CI, and P values were determined by comparing the metrics provided by the top 50 papers from Altmetric and WoS.


    Table 1 presents a comparison of the top 10 cited articles on WoS and the top 10 articles with the highest AAS.

    The mean AAS for the top 50 papers from Altmetric and WoS were 39.1 and 24.2, respectively (P=.02). The P values were statistically significant in several of the categories compared, including the AAS (P=.02), news outlet mentions (P=.008), and Twitter mentions (P=.02) (Table 2). Recurring themes in the top AAS skin-of-color (SoC) papers included skin cancer; cosmetic dermatology, notably pigmentation disorders; and inadequate knowledge among health care practitioners in identifying dermatologic conditions in SoC patients. By contrast, the top-cited SoC papers from WoS involved basic science research of dermatologic conditions and recommendations for assessment tools for clinicians and patients.

    Table 1. Top 10 cited dermatology papers on Web of Science compared to the top 10 high-scoring Altmetric papers.
    Article titleAuthorsAltmetric Attention ScoreTotal citations (on Web of Science), nPublication yearJournalCountry
    Top 10 Altmetric articles

    		Postinflammatory hyperpigmentation: A review of the epidemiology, clinical features, and treatment options in skin of colorDavis et al [2]2113592010JCADaUnited States

    		Acne vulgaris in skin of color: Understanding nuances and optimizing treatment outcomesAlexis [3]179122014JDDbUnited States

    		Background and room illumination in color identification of skin lesionsMaymone et al [4]12862017JAMAcDermatologyUnited States

    		Skin cancer and photoprotection in people of color: A review and recommendations for physicians and the publicAgbai et al [5]1221202014JAADdUnited States

    		UV Exposure and the risk of cutaneous melanoma in skin of color: A systematic reviewLopes et al [6]10272021JAMA DermatologyUnited States

    		Skin color in dermatology textbooks: An updated evaluation and analysisAdelekun et al [7]98172021JAADUnited States

    		Skin cancer in skin of colorBradford [8]801962009Dermatology NursingUnited States

    		The use of noncultured regenerative epithelial suspension for improving skin color and scars: A report of 8 cases and review of the literatureRen et al [9]7222019Journal of CosmeticDermatologyChina

    		Gaps in the understanding and treatment of skin cancer in people of colorKailas et al [10]5442016JAADUnited States

    		How dermatology is failing melanoma patients with skin of color: Unanswered questions on risk and eye-opening disparities in outcomes are weighing heavily on melanoma patients with darker skinNelson [11]5332020Cancer CytopathologyUnited States
    Top 10 Web of Science articles

    		Skin cancer in skin of colorGloster Jr et al [12]263012006JAADUnited States

    		Skin of color: Biology, structure, function, and implications for dermatologic diseaseTaylor [13]342202002JAADUnited States

    		A mouse model of vitiligo with focused epidermal depigmentation requires IFN-gamma for autoreactive CD8(+) T-cell accumulation in the skinHarris et al [14]241592012JIDeUnited States

    		Skin cancer and photoprotection in people of color: A review and recommendations for physicians and the publicAgbai et al [5]1221202014JAADUnited States

    		Acne vulgaris in skin of colorTaylor et al [15]21022002JAADUnited States

    		The Asian dermatologic patient review of common pigmentary disorders and cutaneous diseasesHo et al [16]1842009American Journal of Clinical DermatologyChina

    		Melasma: an up-to-date comprehensive reviewOgbechie-Godec et al [17]10612017Dermatology and TherapyUnited States

    		Development and validation of a vitiligo-specific quality-of-life instrument (VitiQoL)Lilly et al [18]2612013JAADUnited States

    		Accuracy of self-report in assessing Fitzpatrick skin phototypes I through VIEilers et al [19]18532013JAMA DermatologyUnited States

    		Defining pseudofolliculitis barbae in 2001: A review of the literature and current trendsPerry et al [20]3522002JAADUnited States
    Table 2. The top 50 Altmetric papers versus the top 50 cited papers in Web of Science.

    		Altmetric Attention ScoreCitationsNews outlet mentionsBlog mentionsTwitter mentionsCount of mentions by members of the publicCount of mentions by practitioners
    Top 50 skin-of-color Altmetric publications, mean (95% CI)39.1 (27.1-51.1)41.9 (20.2-63.6)4.7 (3.0-6.4)0.2 (0.1-0.4)9.9 (6.2-13.6)5.6 (3.5-7.8)1.0 (0.5-1.5)
    Top 50 skin-of-color Web of Science publications, mean (95% CI)24.2 (14.6-33.8)46.1 (31.2-61.0)2.1 (1.1-3.2)0.2 (0.1-0.4)5.9 (2.9-8.8)4.1 (2.0-6.2)0.7 (0.2-1.2)
    P valuea.02.34.008.42.02.17.11

    aJCAD: Journal of Clinical & Aesthetic Dermatology.

    bJDD: Journal of Drugs in Dermatology.

    cJAMA: Journal of the American Medical Association.

    dJAAD: Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.

    eJID: Journal of Investigative Dermatology.

    at test.


    Principal Findings

    While highly cited publications often guide clinical recommendations and carry substantial influence on practitioners, they may fail to highlight the discussions taking place outside of the scientific community [21]. For SoC patients, their interests and concerns regarding dermatologic conditions must be understood by health care providers as disease processes often manifest differently in this population compared to the general public [13]. With over 70% of the US population using social media, these platforms will allow increased sharing of research topics, supporting the utility of Altmetric scoring compared to citation count alone [22]. Within our study, the difference in recurrent themes between top AAS versus top-cited publications indicated that the clinical mindset and patient-centered topics may not align.

    Limitations and Future Work

    Limitations to our study include a small sample size, narrow inclusion criteria, and a lack of time constraints. Future studies comparing AAS and WoS should be confined to a short time period to mitigate temporal confounding factors due to the differing accrual rates of citation count and AAS [23]. Medical societies and health care providers can use insights from this study to shape the practice of dermatology to better understand the interests and expectations of SoC patients.

    Conclusion

    AAS and WoS provide different metrics on the influence of academic research. Factors that may generate greater social media attention include papers with more pictures and an author’s social media presence. Elements that may produce greater citation counts include a journal’s impact factor and an author’s academic reputation and home institution. Altmetric uniquely represents the attention of the general public, which can facilitate patient-centered decision-making.

    Conflicts of Interest

    RPD is editor-in-chief of JMIR Dermatology, a joint coordinating editor for Cochrane Skin, a dermatology section editor for UpToDate, a social media editor for the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, and a podcast editor for the Journal of Investigative Dermatology (JID). He is a coordinating editor representative on Cochrane Council. RPD receives editorial stipends (JID, JMIR Dermatology), royalties (UpToDate), and expense reimbursement from Cochrane Skin.

    1. Bernstam EV, Herskovic JR, Aphinyanaphongs Y, Aliferis CF, Sriram MG, Hersh WR. Using citation data to improve retrieval from MEDLINE. J Am Med Inform Assoc 2006;13(1):96-105 [FREE Full text] [CrossRef] [Medline]
    2. Davis EC, Callender VD. Postinflammatory hyperpigmentation: a review of the epidemiology, clinical features, and treatment options in skin of color. J Clin Aesthet Dermatol 2010 Jul;3(7):20-31 [FREE Full text] [Medline]
    3. Alexis AF. Acne vulgaris in skin of color: understanding nuances and optimizing treatment outcomes. J Drugs Dermatol 2014 Jun;13(6):s61-s65. [Medline]
    4. Maymone MBC, Neamah HH, Wirya SA, Patzelt NM, Secemsky EA, Zancanaro PQ, et al. Background and room illumination in color identification of skin lesions: A cross-sectional study. JAMA Dermatol 2017 Oct 01;153(10):1059-1061 [FREE Full text] [CrossRef] [Medline]
    5. Agbai ON, Buster K, Sanchez M, Hernandez C, Kundu RV, Chiu M, et al. Skin cancer and photoprotection in people of color: a review and recommendations for physicians and the public. J Am Acad Dermatol 2014 Apr;70(4):748-762. [CrossRef] [Medline]
    6. Lopes FCPS, Sleiman MG, Sebastian K, Bogucka R, Jacobs EA, Adamson AS. UV Exposure and the risk of cutaneous melanoma in skin of color: A systematic review. JAMA Dermatol 2021 Feb 01;157(2):213-219. [CrossRef] [Medline]
    7. Adelekun A, Onyekaba G, Lipoff JB. Skin color in dermatology textbooks: An updated evaluation and analysis. J Am Acad Dermatol 2021 Jan;84(1):194-196. [CrossRef] [Medline]
    8. Bradford PT. Skin cancer in skin of color. Dermatol Nurs 2009;21(4):170-7, 206; quiz 178 [FREE Full text] [Medline]
    9. Ren J, Liu J, Yu N, Zhang W, Qian H, Liu Z, et al. The use of noncultured regenerative epithelial suspension for improving skin color and scars: A report of 8 cases and review of the literature. J Cosmet Dermatol 2019 Jul 26. [CrossRef] [Medline]
    10. Kailas A, Solomon JA, Mostow EN, Rigel DS, Kittles R, Taylor SC. Gaps in the understanding and treatment of skin cancer in people of color. J Am Acad Dermatol 2016 May;74(5):1020-1021. [CrossRef] [Medline]
    11. Nelson B. How dermatology is failing melanoma patients with skin of color: Unanswered questions on risk and eye-opening disparities in outcomes are weighing heavily on melanoma patients with darker skin. In this article, part 1 of a 2-part series, we explore the deadly consequences of racism and inequality in cancer care. Cancer Cytopathol 2020 Jan;128(1):7-8 [FREE Full text] [CrossRef] [Medline]
    12. Gloster HM, Neal K. Skin cancer in skin of color. J Am Acad Dermatol 2006 Nov;55(5):741-60; quiz 761. [CrossRef] [Medline]
    13. Taylor SC. Skin of color: biology, structure, function, and implications for dermatologic disease. J Am Acad Dermatol 2002 Mar;46(2 Suppl Understanding):S41-S62. [CrossRef] [Medline]
    14. Harris JE, Harris TH, Weninger W, Wherry EJ, Hunter CA, Turka LA. A mouse model of vitiligo with focused epidermal depigmentation requires IFN-γ for autoreactive CD8⁺ T-cell accumulation in the skin. J Invest Dermatol 2012 Jul;132(7):1869-1876 [FREE Full text] [CrossRef] [Medline]
    15. Taylor SC, Cook-Bolden F, Rahman Z, Strachan D. Acne vulgaris in skin of color. J Am Acad Dermatol 2002 Mar;46(2 Suppl Understanding):S98-106. [CrossRef] [Medline]
    16. Ho SGY, Chan HHL. The Asian dermatologic patient: review of common pigmentary disorders and cutaneous diseases. Am J Clin Dermatol 2009;10(3):153-168. [CrossRef] [Medline]
    17. Ogbechie-Godec OA, Elbuluk N. Melasma: an up-to-date comprehensive review. Dermatol Ther (Heidelb) 2017 Sep;7(3):305-318 [FREE Full text] [CrossRef] [Medline]
    18. Lilly E, Lu PD, Borovicka JH, Victorson D, Kwasny MJ, West DP, et al. Development and validation of a vitiligo-specific quality-of-life instrument (VitiQoL). J Am Acad Dermatol 2013 Jul;69(1):e11-e18. [CrossRef] [Medline]
    19. Eilers S, Bach DQ, Gaber R, Blatt H, Guevara Y, Nitsche K, et al. Accuracy of self-report in assessing Fitzpatrick skin phototypes I through VI. JAMA Dermatol 2013 Nov;149(11):1289-1294. [CrossRef] [Medline]
    20. Perry PK, Cook-Bolden FE, Rahman Z, Jones E, Taylor SC. Defining pseudofolliculitis barbae in 2001: a review of the literature and current trends. J Am Acad Dermatol 2002 Mar;46(2 Suppl Understanding):S113-S119. [CrossRef] [Medline]
    21. Chavarro D, Ràfols I, Tang P. To what extent is inclusion in the Web of Science an indicator of journal ‘quality’? Res Eval 2018;27(2):106-118. [CrossRef]
    22. Dean B. How Many People Use Social Media in 2021? (65+ Statistics). Backlinko. 2021 Oct 10.   URL: https://backlinko.com/social-media-users [accessed 2022-01-02]
    23. Huang A, Weng CY. Correspondence. Retina 2022 Jun 01;42(6):e30. [CrossRef] [Medline]

    ‎
    AAS: Altmetric Attention Score
    SoC: skin of color
    WoS: Web of Science

    Edited by R Alhusayen; submitted 14.02.22; peer-reviewed by J Lipoff, A Huang; comments to author 18.05.22; revised version received 22.05.22; accepted 23.05.22; published 06.06.22

    Copyright

    ©Benjamin R Cooper, Jaclyn B Anderson, Melissa R Laughter, Colby L Presley, J Mark Albrecht, Robert P Dellavalle. Originally published in JMIR Dermatology (http://derma.jmir.org), 06.06.2022.

    This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in JMIR Dermatology Research, is properly cited. The complete bibliographic information, a link to the original publication on http://derma.jmir.org, as well as this copyright and license information must be included.