The first ten years of The Foot: a retrospective analysis of publication patterns, 1991–2000

Background: The Foot commenced publication in 1991 to provide an international forum for clinical foot and ankle research. As the journal has just reached the end of its first decade, it is timely to look back and review publication patterns over this time. Methods: A retrospective analysis of every paper published in The Foot between 1991 and 2000 was undertaken. Articles were evaluated to determine the article type (i.e.: original research, literature review, case report, etc), the topic area, the country of origin of the primary author and the professional background of the primary author. Results: The majority of papers published have been original research (44%), followed by case reports (32%) and literature reviews (18%). The topic area of papers has been diverse, covering 23 different categories, with most papers pertaining to foot surgery (27%). Authors from 27 different countries have published in the journal, with most papers submitted by authors from the UK (67%). The most frequent publishers in the journal were orthopaedic surgeons (63%), followed by podiatrists (25%). Between 1991 and 2000, there has been a steady increase in the number of papers published by podiatrists, and a small increase in the number of papers published by authors outside the UK. Conclusions: These results confirm the status of The Foot as a truly international, multidisciplinary forum for the publication of clinical foot and ankle research.