Measuring Influence in the Digital Age: Predictive Value of Altmetrics in Plastic Surgery Literature…

Cohort studyPlastic and reconstructive surgery· Jul 2026

Measuring Influence in the Digital Age: Predictive Value of Altmetrics in Plastic Surgery Literature Compared to Journal Impact Factor.

Nathan Ramachandran, Avi A Gajjar, Aditya Behal … Alexandra R Paul

Plastic SurgeryCohort studyQ1IF 2.8

Altmetric Attention Score predicts 16% of citation impact in plastic surgery.

Measuring Influence in the Digital Age: Predictive Value of Altmetrics in Plastic Surgery Literature Compared to Journal Impact Factor.

Nathan Ramachandran … Alexandra R Paul

Plastic and reconstructive surgery · Jul 2026 · Q1 in Surgery

Background

Plastic and reconstructive surgery is among the most socially engaged surgical fields, with widespread use of digital platforms to share research.

Purpose

This study aims to determine whether Altmetric Attention Score can serve as a reliable predictor of citation impact within the field.

Methods

A total of 5,418 original research articles published between January 2022 and December 2023 in ten leading plastic surgery journals were analyzed.

n = 5,418 original research articles

16%

Results

16%

higher online engagement helps explain a portion of how often plastic surgery research is cited

n = 5,418 original research articles

More results

Time since publication was the strongest predictor of citation count, accounting for 82% of the model's explanatory power (p < 0.001).

In contrast, the 5-year journal impact factor accounted for only 1.6% and was not a statistically significant predictor (p = 0.119).

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Conclusion · 1 of 2

Altmetric Attention Score is a valuable early predictor of academic impact in plastic surgery literature and outperforms journal impact factor.

Conclusion · 2 of 2

Altmetrics provide timely insight into research visibility and should be used alongside established metrics to more effectively evaluate scholarly reach in the digital era.

Measuring Influence in the Digital Age: Predictive Value of Altmetrics in Plastic Surgery Literature Compared to Journal Impact Factor.

Measuring Influence in the Digital Age: Predictive Value of Altmetrics in Plastic Surgery Literature Compared to Journal Impact Factor.

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