Retraction of biomedical publications with Tunisian affiliation: causes, characteristics, and legislation regarding breaches of scientific integrity.

INTRODUCTION

breaches of research integrity have risen during these years. Tunisia´s stance regarding scientific integrity remains unknown. The aim of our study was to identify the reasons for the retraction of Tunisia-affiliated publications in the biomedical field, to describe the characteristics of these retractions, and to assess the position of Tunisian legislation regarding breaches of research integrity.

METHODS

I compiled up to November 3, 2023, and retracted biomedical papers using the PubMed and Retraction Watch databases. For each eligible retracted article, a descriptive study of the collected variables was carried out. These included the reasons for retraction, characteristics related to the article, authors, and journal.

RESULTS

the search identified 22 eligible publications. Reasons for retraction were categorized into six groups. Plagiarism accounted for 45.5% of cases. The first retraction dated back to 2005, with an average number of retracted publications being 1.22 and a median retraction time of 347 days. Among the retracted publications, 77.3% included a retraction notice. A post-retraction citation was found in 81.3% of cases. None of the retracted articles were written by a single author. An international collaboration was found in 27.3% of cases. Ninety-five point five percent of journals offered open access with 81.8% using a gold open access model. In terms of bibliometrics, eleven articles were published in highly reputed journals.

CONCLUSION

Tunisia is not spared from breaches of scientific integrity. The controversies relating to the categories of breaches call for standardization. The legislative framework for this phenomenon also remains to be developed in Tunisia.