Publications in selected medical education journals according to the income status of the country of affiliation of the first author and the corresponding author

Abstract Introduction: The distribution of publications in selected medical education journals according to the income status of the country where the affiliated institutions of the first author and the corresponding author were located during the period from 2020 to 2022 were studied. Methods: The Scopus quartile one (Q1) journals Academic Medicine, BMC Medical Education, Medical Education, Medical Education Online, Medical Teacher, and Teaching and Learning in Medicine were explored. The details noted were the year of publication, the type of article, the journal’s name, and the income status of the country of the first author and the corresponding author. Results: There were 5714 unique articles published. There were 30 instances where the authors had multiple affiliations in countries of differing income levels and the articles were duplicated/triplicated providing a total of 5750 articles. Most articles (87%) were published by authors from high-income countries and only 0.8% were from low-income countries with the remainder from middle-income countries. BMC Medical Education had the maximum percentage of authors from low and middle-income countries. Conclusion: Nations having most of the world’s population and medical schools are significantly under-represented in publications in the selected journals. This is a matter of concern and requires further study.