Barriers to Full Text Journal Publication of Abstracts Presented at Annual AAOMS Meetings

The purpose of the present study was to identify the perceived barriers to full-text journal publication (JP) from abstracts presented at the 2010-2013 American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (AAOMS) meetings. In the present cross-sectional study, all unpublished AAOMS abstracts (n = 473) from the temporal period were procured using a database from a previous publication. An online questionnaire was then distributed to the primary or secondary author for whom an e-mail address was available through the AAOMS Member Directory (n = 260) to assess 1) the current publication status of the abstract; and 2) the perceived barriers to JP. The responses were summarized with descriptive statistics. Of the 260 authors surveyed, 51 responded, for a response rate of 19.6%. At the time of the survey, 66.7% of the authors stated that submission for JP had not been pursued, and 15.7% stated that the abstract had achieved JP. However, no citations were provided. Overall, a low perceived priority (52.9%), insufficient time (50%), methodologic limitations (23.5%), and inadequate institutional support (17.6%) were the 4 primary reasons cited by the authors for the failure to pursue or achieve JP. JP of abstracts presented at the annual AAOMS meeting is very low, with many barriers to JP of presented abstracts.