The analysis, posted on 9 July, 2026 to the preprint server SSRN, analyzed granted patents in the United States in PatentsView, a database developed by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) using artificial intelligence algorithms, and the Retraction Watch Database.

Of the more than 13 million patents in the USPTO database, 136,162 contained citations to at least one scientific paper. Of these, 401 patents cited retracted papers: 195 cited the retracted paper before it was filed, 92 cited papers retracted while being examined, and 114 cited a paper that was retracted after the patent was granted, the study revealed.

Of the 401 patents that cite retracted papers, Hana Kim, of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology in Daejeon, South Korea conducted a further audit of 39 high-impact filings — defined by how many citations the patent itself has received, among other reasons. Nearly half (19) relied substantially on the retracted papers they cited.
 

Source https://retractionwatch.com/2026/07/30/us-patents-contain-citations-to-retracted-scientific-papers/

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