ObjectiveTo understand the guideline citation of papers published by West China Hospital of Sichuan University, and to provide references for evaluating quality of papers. MethodsWe searched Web of Science core collection database to identify the published papers with the first author's primary affiliation at West China Hospital of Sichuan University until December 31st, 2022. Two reviewers independently performed the screening process and identified eligible papers. Afterward, we extracted the data from the selected papers, obtained their citation papers, and then separately constructed two databases, the West China Paper Database and its Citation Database. The differences in guideline citation among different types of papers and different levels of papers were analyzed using the χ2 test and Mann-Whitney U test, respectively. ResultsA total of 22 681 papers and 252 336 citations were included, of which 18 026 (79.5) articles, 2 773 (12.2) systematic reviews and 1 882 (8.3) reviews. The rates of article, systematic review and review were 2.6%, 15.8% and 2.2%, respectively. There were significant differences in three types (P<0.001). The citation rates of papers among the top 10 disciplines were different apparently: the highest citation rate was 13.9%, while the lowest citation rate was 2.6%. The guideline citation among different levels of papers showed no significant difference, but Q1 papers were more likely to be cited by Q1 guidelines (P<0.05). ConclusionPapers cited by guidelines are unevenly distributed across their article types and subject areas. High-quality papers are more likely to be cited by high-quality guidelines. Therefore, the citation of papers by guidelines can be considered as one of the indicators to evaluate the quality of papers.