Retraction Radar

A lightweight, reproducible tool to check whether papers cited by an article (e.g. a systematic review or meta-analysis) have been retracted, corrected or flagged with an expression of concern.

Live website:
https://helenopaiva.github.io/Retraction-Radar/

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What it does

Given a DOI (or DOI URL), Retraction Radar:

1. Resolves the article in OpenAlex and retrieves its reference list.
2. Fetches metadata for each cited work.
3. Checks cited records against Crossref update metadata and the Retraction Watch database.
4. Displays an interactive table with filters and status flags.
5. Allows exporting the full results as a CSV file.

The goal is to rapidly identify references that warrant manual review.

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Why this exists

Systematic reviews and meta-analyses can become unreliable when included studies are later retracted or substantially corrected. There is no simple, unified way to periodically screen reference lists for these events.

Retraction Radar provides a fast and transparent way to:

• Scan an article’s references for potential integrity issues
• Document findings via CSV export
• Support editorial, reviewer, and author re-evaluation

It does not replace critical appraisal or editorial judgment.

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How to use the Retraction Radar webpage

1. Open the live site:
   https://helenopaiva.github.io/Retraction-Radar/
2. Paste a DOI or DOI URL.
3. Click Analyze.
4. Review flagged references using the interactive table.
5. Export the results as a CSV if needed.

The webpage is a static, client-side tool (no backend).
Results reflect the metadata available at the time of analysis.

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How to use the Google Sheets script (code.gs)

The repository includes a Google Sheets script (code.gs) designed to work with large citation datasets inside Google Sheets, integrating multiple scholarly data sources.

Workflow

1. Run a literature search (e.g. PubMed or similar).
2. Export the entire search result as a CSV file.
3. Upload the CSV to Google Sheets.
4. In Google Sheets, open:
   Extensions → Apps Script
5. Paste the contents of code.gs into the editor and save.
6. Run the main function and authorize the script when prompted.
7. The script will retrieve and reconcile metadata from:
   • OpenAlex
   • Crossref
   • Retraction Watch
     and populate structured tables in the spreadsheet.

This workflow is intended for:

• Large or repeated searches
• Metadata normalization
• Offline or auditable citation screening

Authorization is required only on first use.

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Data sources

• OpenAlex – reference lists and general scholarly metadata
• Crossref – update metadata (retractions, corrections, withdrawals)
• Retraction Watch – curated database of retracted and problematic publications

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Limitations

• Dependent on the completeness and accuracy of external metadata sources.
• References without stable identifiers may not be fully resolved.
• Results represent a single point in time; periodic re-checking is recommended.

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Author

Developed and maintained by
Heleno de Paiva Oliveira, MD, PhD
Professor of Anesthesiology
Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN)