Health and medical research in Nepal: a bibliometric review.

This study aimed to quantify the following: (1) health research in academic journals covering Nepal, (2) location of authors, and (3) most prevalent specialties. Published health research conducted in Nepal during 1996 to May 2007 was assessed by searching from 4 electronic databases, and 631 research articles met the inclusion criteria. Only 11% was published in Nepalese journals. Most research covered urban districts. About two thirds of articles had Nepalese authors, but only 41% had a Nepalese first author. Child health and nutrition (11%), maternal health and women's health (11%), and sexual reproductive health and HIV/AIDS, and family planning (11%) were the most common topics. Most articles (78%) reported quantitative methods. The number of research articles from Nepal is fairly small and concentrated on a limited number of topics and districts. Strategic planning is required to improve the research capacity of Nepal to achieve public health improvements using locally produced evidence.