Evolutions in Medical Research in Iran: 1980 to 2040

There has been a remarkable rise in medical research activities during last 40 years in Iran, and the world ranking in production of Iranian medical documents has improved from 54 to 15 in 2022. The aim of this review is to summarize research activities during last 40 years and project important factors for emergence of Iranian medical research in the coming years.

Related articles were sought from Iran Doc Engine and appropriate parts of three editions of the book “Health in the Islamic Republic of Iran” were reviewed.

Between 1980-2000, there was a remarkable rise in the number of universities of medical sciences and related schools. The number of students, both undergraduate and postgraduate, including PhD courses and residency programs increased. Many clinical subspecialty programs were initiated in various clinical fields. Research centers and institutes were developed in many universities. Between 2001-2020, there was an extraordinary increase in number of yearly published medical articles. Number of citations to Iranian articles also increased.

In the last 40 years, the Islamic Republic of Iran has been able to provide the infrastructure and human resources needed for medical research. Employing qualified human resources and translating their knowledge, formulating policies and effective planning for innovation, creativity and technologies needed to solve social, economic, cultural and health problems of society and achieving scientific authority requires strong national determination and revolutionary transformation in the coming decades.