Altmetric releases Top 100 scientific articles of 2018

The Altmetric Top 100 typically features research from a variety of disciplines, written by authors from all corners of the globe.


Altmetric has revealed the 100 articles that have generated the most significant online attention.

The annual Altmetric Top 100 highlights research published in 2018 that has generated significant online attention and discussion – from post-publication peer review sites and public policy documents to mainstream media, blogs, Wikipedia, and social media platforms.

The Altmetric Top 100 highlights the diverse research topics that have attracted attention.

This year’s Top 100 includes articles on climate change, the links between mental health and physical fitness, and the spread of misinformation online. 

The list features papers published in 45 different journal titles; the University of Cambridge had the most affiliated papers (10 papers); The journal Science featured more than any other (12 times).

Top five articles of 2018:

  1. Mortality in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria (New England Journal of Medicine, July 2018)
  2. The spread of true and false news online (Science, March 2018)
  3. Alcohol use and burden for 195 countries and territories, 1990–2016: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016 (The Lancet, September 2018)
  4. Trajectories of the Earth System in the Anthropocene (PNAS, August 2018)
  5. Association between physical exercise and mental health in 1·2 million individuals in the USA between 2011 and 2015: a cross-sectional study (The Lancet Psychiatry, September 2018)

More information.