Role of Orvosi Hetilap in the development of Hungarian gastroenterology.
OBJECTIVE
To analyze the contribution of Orvosi Hetilap (Hungarian Medical Journal) to the field of gastroenterology.


METHODS
All issues of the journal between 1857 and 2008 and identified original articles and reviews dealing with gastroenterology were reviewed. The rate of publications, the thematic distribution and foreign sources of knowledge were assessed. The dates that major achievements in gastroenterology were introduced in Hungary were compared to those dates in Western medicine.


RESULTS
A total of 4799 original/research articles on gastroenterology were published, which represents 11.1% of the total publications. Thematic rankings showed that liver and biliary diseases represented 20.36% of the total, followed by gastric diseases (9.35%) and surgery (8.77%). A total of 268 foreign journals were reviewed: 50.9% were German, 30.4% English, 12.1% French and only 6.6% were in other languages. The major achievements of gastroenterology were introduced with varying delays compared to Western countries.


CONCLUSIONS
Orvosi Hetilap has made a large contribution to the development of Hungarian gastroenterology. The high proportion of gastroenterology studies underlines the importance of digestive diseases in public health.
Buzás
György Miklós
GM
Department of Gastroenterology, Ferencváros Health Service Non-Profit Ltd., 1095 Budapest, Mester utca 45, Hungary. drgbuzas@gmail.com
D005762:Gastroenterology / Q000266:history*; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D006801:Humans; D006814:Hungary; D010506:Periodicals as Topic / Q000266:history*