Department of Neurochemistry, National Institute of Neurology and Neurosurgery Manuel Velasco Suárez, Insurgentes Sur 3877, La Fama, Tlalpan, Ciudad de Mexico, 14269, México.
General Directorate, National Institute of Rehabilitation Luis Guillermo Ibarra Ibarra, Calzada México-Xochimilco 289, Arenal de Guadalupe, Ciudad de México, 14389, México.
Clin Rheumatol. 2022 Jul;41(7):2241-2248. doi: 10.1007/s10067-022-06198-9. Epub 2022 May 6.
"Paper mills" are unethical outsourcing agencies proficient in fabricating fraudulent manuscripts submitted to scholarly journals. In earlier years, the activity of such companies involved plagiarism, but their processes have gained complexity, involving the fabrication of images and fake results. The objective of this study is to examine the main features of retracted paper mills' articles registered in the Retraction Watch database, from inception to the present, analyzing the number of articles per year, their number of citations, and their authorship network. Eligibility criteria for inclusion: retracted articles in any language due to paper mill activity. Retraction letters, notes, and notices, for exclusion. We collected the associated citations and the journals' impact factors of the retracted papers from Web of Science (Clarivate) and performed a data network analysis using VOSviewer software. This scoping review complies with PRISMA 2020 statement and main extensions. After a thorough analysis of the data, we identified 325 retracted articles due to suspected operations published in 31 journals (with a mean impact factor of 3.1). These retractions have produced 3708 citations. Nearly all retracted papers have come from China. Journal's impact factor lower than 7, life sciences journals, cancer, and molecular biology topics were common among retracted studies. The rapid increase of retractions is highly challenging. Paper mills damage scientific research integrity, exacerbating fraud, plagiarism, fake images, and simulated results. Rheumatologists should be fully aware of this growing phenomenon.
“论文工厂”是不道德的外包机构，擅长伪造提交给学术期刊的虚假稿件。早年，这些公司的活动涉及抄袭，但它们的流程已经变得更加复杂，涉及到图像和虚假结果的伪造。本研究的目的是检查从开始到现在在撤回观察数据库中注册的撤回论文工厂文章的主要特征，分析每年的文章数量、引用次数及其作者网络。纳入标准：由于论文工厂活动而撤回的任何语言的文章。排除撤回信件、注释和通知。我们从科睿唯安（Clarivate）的 Web of Science 中收集了相关引文和被撤回论文的期刊影响因子，并使用 VOSviewer 软件进行了数据网络分析。本范围综述符合 PRISMA 2020 声明和主要扩展。在对数据进行彻底分析后，我们确定了 31 种期刊中因涉嫌操作而发表的 325 篇撤回文章（平均影响因子为 3.1）。这些撤回论文产生了 3708 次引用。几乎所有被撤回的论文都来自中国。被撤回研究中常见的是期刊影响因子低于 7、生命科学期刊、癌症和分子生物学主题。撤回论文数量的快速增加极具挑战性。论文工厂破坏了科学研究的完整性，加剧了欺诈、抄袭、伪造图像和模拟结果的问题。风湿病学家应该充分意识到这一日益增长的现象。
