Autism is part of a group of
developmental disabilities caused by a brain abnormality and is
characterized by repetitive behaviors, speech and language problems,
and problems with social skills and communication. The condition
generally manifests itself during childhood, and is a lifelong
affliction. Our analysis of autism research over the past decade shows
a wide variety of approaches, from epidemiology to genetic studies.
Epidemiological studies, most notably the British twin study, have
drawn the conclusion that autism is heterogeneous in origin. Autopsy
analyses have examined the brain structure of autistic patients.
Genome scan studies have sought to narrow down the responsible genes.
One study in particular on our list focuses on the serotonin
transporter gene as a culprit. Other papers in our top 20 list examine
Theory of Mind testing, the value of behavioral intervention, the
importance of the diagnostic interview, and the therapeutic potential
of various drugs, including clomipramine, desipramine, and
fluvoxamine.
Methodology
To construct this database,
papers were extracted based on title-supplied keywords for
Autism. The keywords used were as follows:
autis*
The baseline time span for this database
is 1993-2003 (fifth bimonthly). The resulting database contained 4,202 papers;
7,027 authors; 56 countries; 579 journals; and 2,032 institutions.
Rankings
Once the database was in place,
it was used to generate the lists of top 20 papers, authors, journals,
institutions, and nations, covering a time span of 1993-2003 (fifth
bimonthly).
The top 20 papers are ranked
according to total cites. Rankings for author, journal, institution,
and country are listed in three ways: according to total cites, total
papers, and total cites/paper. The paper thresholds used to determine
scientist, institution, country, and journal rankings according to
total cites/paper were as follows: 18, 37, 6, and 14, respectively.
These thresholds correspond to the top 1% of authors, 1% of
institutions, 50% of countries and 10% of journals by total papers.
