Spain is one of the world's leading countries in Alzheimer's research, both in terms of the number of scientific publications and collaborations, as well as impact and excellence. This is reflected in the bibliometric report “Spain on the world map of Alzheimer's research”, conducted by Research Marks Analytics for the Pasqual Maragall Foundation, and that, on the occasion of the World Science Day (10N), publishes its conclusions after analyzing 58,849 scientific publications from around the world related to this field.
The report indicates that Spain is the 6th country in the world in number of publications Alzheimer's disease - the third in the European Union - in a ranking led by the United States, China and the United Kingdom. In addition, the country occupies the fourth position in the world in publications per million inhabitants, and the eighth place According to the indicators of impact and scientific excellenceAll of this places Spain among the leading countries globally in the field of Alzheimer's research.
“All these data show that our scientific system is capable of responding efficiently to the necessary increase in financial resources for Alzheimer's research. We have competitive and excellent research groups and centres that are contributing knowledge of great value on a global scale. As a country, we must be able to take advantage of this invaluable scientific capital to face the enormous challenge that lies ahead.”, points out Arcadi Navarro, director of the Pasqual Maragall Foundation.
It is estimated that around 900,000 people in Spain currently suffer from dementia, mainly due to Alzheimer's disease. With life expectancy increasing, and without an effective treatment to slow or change its course, the number of cases could have doubled by 2050, reaching 1.7 million Spaniards affected.
“The high prevalence of Alzheimer's and dementia among the population, and their enormous economic and social costs, place them among the main threats to the sustainability of our health and care system. Science is the only way to find effective solutions to stop their progression, and as a country we are prepared to face the challenge. But it is essential to invest more efforts and resources, and to place this problem on political agendas and in budgets, if we want to mitigate their effect.”, warns Arcadi Navarro.
Barcelona and Madrid, major international hubs
The bibliometric report commissioned by the Foundation also presents an overview of the scientific production on Alzheimer's both by autonomous communities and by Spanish cities. In this regard, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid, with 507 and 378 publications respectively in the period 2016-2020, lead the national ranking, followed by the Valencian Community (246), Andalusia (100) and the Basque Country (97).
By cities, Barcelona ranks 6th in volume of publications on Alzheimer's in the world ranking - behind London, New York, Boston, Paris and San Francisco - and is the 5th city in the world by publications per million inhabitants. Madrid occupies the 14th and the 11th position, respectively.
At the level of impact and excellence, Barcelona is ranked 8th overall, as well as being the 2nd city with the most international collaborations, second only to London, while Madrid is ranked 15th in impact and excellence, and 7th in collaborations with centres in other countries.
As for Spanish research centres, 7 of the 10 most relevant are located in Barcelona (the other three are in Madrid and Navarra). The University of Barcelona (UB) and the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) lead the ranking in terms of number of publications, followed by the Hospital Clínic de Barcelona and the August Pi i Sunyer Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBAPS).
The impact of his publications stands out: Barcelonaßeta Brain Research Center (BBRC), a research center of the Pasqual Maragall Foundation, which focuses its efforts on research into the early detection of Alzheimer's disease.
Data from the bibliometric report “Spain on the world map of Alzheimer's research” are available in this link and are part of a larger bibliometric study project to be published in 2022.
