title: Fifty years of thoracic surgical research in South Africa.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the scope and trends in clinical research in South African thoracic surgery between 1955 and 2006 and to measure its impact on clinical practice.
  
  
  METHODS
  A systematic review of all SA thoracic surgical publications was performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 252 general thoracic publications and a marked decrease in publications was noted after the peak period of productivity of the 1980s. There was a shift toward the private sector as an origin of articles and toward a local, non-indexed journal. Inflammatory lung disease was the most frequent topic of publication. Case series and case reports were the most frequent type of article.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The vulnerability of a small specialty in a developing country is illustrated by the clear trends that emerged. The study provides important indicators for future research, highlights the need for a national database of clinical experience, and emphasises the importance of rekindling interest and a culture of research in thoracic surgery.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein. al@thoracicsurgery.co.za
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Linegar
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Smit
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Goldstraw
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: van Zyl
mesh_terms: D035843:Biomedical Research / Q000266:history*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D006801:Humans; D013019:South Africa; D013903:Thoracic Surgery / Q000266:history*; D019616:Thoracic Surgical Procedures / Q000266:history*; D013997:Time Factors