The Evolution of Female Authorship in Facial Plastic Surgery: Changing Trends Over Time.

[BACKGROUND] Women have historically been underrepresented in surgical subspecialties like facial plastic surgery. Authorship is a key metric in career progression; hence, it is important to assay progress in this domain.

[STUDY OBJECTIVES] To identify trends in female authorship within facial plastic surgery over time.

[METHODS] Publications from three facial plastic surgery journals were reviewed for the gender of authors from 2007 to 2022. Female authorship across time was compared using chi-squared and Cochrane-Armitage trend tests.

[RESULTS] A total of 6,921 original research articles were identified; 2,419 articles (34.9%) had female authorship. Female authorship showed a significant increase over time for first/single authors ( = 0.028), last authors ( = 0.015), and all authors combined ( = 0.013). Male authorship was significantly higher across all years studied ( = 0.008). (FPSAM), (PRS) had significant increases in overall female authorship from 2007 to 2022 ( = 0.003 and = 0.03, respectively). FPSAM showed a significant increase in female first/single authorship ( = 0.001), while PRS showed a significant increase in female last authorship ( = 0.02).

[CONCLUSION] Female authorship in facial plastic surgery is increasing over time. First/single authorship is advancing more rapidly, possibly reflecting more female trainees advancing their careers. Further work is needed to support female representation in the facial plastic surgery literature.