Introduction: Lateral anterior column release (ACR) is a minimally invasive option for the correction of sagittal plane deformity. To assemble a homogeneous picture of published research on ACR, an advanced bibliometric analysis was conducted to compile the top-ten most-cited articles on the topic of ACR. Methods: A keyword search using the Thomson Reuters Web of Knowledge was conducted to identify articles discussing the role of lateral ACR. The articles were then ranked based on the total number of citations to identify the ten most-cited articles published. A subjective appraisal of the findings of these articles was conducted to provide a ranked literature review and to examine trends in the study of ACR between 2012 and 2019. Results: The earliest published article on ACR was in 2012 by Deukmedjian et al. Three articles were in vitro biomechanical assessments of ACR, and seven articles were on outcome analyses, which were either case series or case controlled. The most-cited article was a biomechanical study authored by Uribe et al. The article with the highest rate of citations/year was authored by Manwaring et al. Uribe and the European Spine Journal were the most frequently cited author and journal, respectively. Conclusions: The lateral ACR approach has enjoyed significant scholarly attention since its advent. Higher-level analyses with robust control groups, larger sample sizes, and long-term follow-up are necessary to improve our understanding of this approach.
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