Research in prosthodontics: A 10-year observation of trends in topics, collaboration, and funding

Purpose: The objectives of this study were to investigate the nature of recently published prosthodontic literature, to investigate the types of collaboration and funding as well as their relationship, and to analyze the associations between collaboration and extramural funding. Materials and Methods: Three peer-reviewed prosthodontic journals were used for the analysis of articles published in 1998, 2003, and 2008. The articles were analyzed based on associations between the type of article, type of original research, collaboration, and funding. The chi-square test and logistic regression were used for data analysis (α = .05). Results: From 998 articles, a significant decrease in reviews (P < .001) and an increase in case reports (P = .001) were observed. Articles regarding dental materials ranged from 53% to 58% of the total original research, and the amount of collaboration among disciplines (P = .012), institutions (P < .001), and countries (P = .014) increased from 1998 to 2008. Most studies (77.5%) did not report funding, and articles related to dental materials had the most collaboration and funding. Dental materials (48%), clinical care (37%), and education/public health research (7%) were supported by private companies, and biomedical and translational studies were mostly supported by a university (13%) or the government (7%). A strong association was noted between collaboration (P = .010), extramural funding, and original research, especially related to education/public health (P < .001), clinical care (P = .013), and dental materials (P = .004). Conclusion: An increase in original research and collaboration was observed from 1998 to 2008. Studies that reported funding remained constant. A strong association with collaboration and funding was observed, along with studies involving clinical care, education, public health, and dental materials.