AUTHOR=Li Zhi-Qiang , Wang Xue-Feng , Feng Cao , Fei Yu-Tong , Liu Jian-Ping 

TITLE=Global trends of acupuncture clinical research on analgesia from 2010 to 2023: a bibliometric and visualization analysis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Neurology

VOLUME=Volume 15 - 2024

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2024.1368988

DOI=10.3389/fneur.2024.1368988

ISSN=1664-2295

ABSTRACT=Objective: Acupuncture, acknowledged as a potent non-pharmacological therapy, is frequently employed to alleviate pain. Despite its widespread use, there is a lack of overarching bibliometric analysis of clinical research on acupuncture analgesia. We aimed to summarize current patterns, hotspots, and development trends of this field through bibliometric analysis.Methods: This study evaluates academic publications retrieved from the Web of Science database (2010.01-2023.09) concerning acupuncture analgesia in clinical settings. All primary and secondary studies on humans were included. To track global developmental trends, we employed several software for analyzing annual publication volumes, countries/regions, institutions, authors, cited authors, journals, cited journals, references, and keywords and to draw collaborative networks and reference co-citation network maps.The final search encompassed 7,190 relevant studies, including 1,263 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and 1,293 systematic reviews and meta-analyses.The results indicated a gradual increase in annual publications on acupuncture analgesia in clinical. Among countries and institutions, China ( 2139) and Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (258) ranked first. Liang FR (89 articles) emerged as the most prolific author, while MacPherson H (604) was the most cited author. MEDICINE (455) was the most productive journal, while Pain (2473/0.20) ranked first ranking first in both frequency and centrality of cited journals. Notably, the most frequently cited reference was a systematic review of individual patient data on acupuncture for chronic pain that published by Vickers Andrew J in 2012 (156). Burst analysis identified frontier research areas for 2010-2020, encompassing network meta-analysis, case reports, dry needling, lumbar disc herniation, cancer, postherpetic neuralgia, insomnia, and bibliometric analysis. Conclusions: This study outlines current trends and potential future research hotspots in clinical acupuncture analgesia over the past decade. Findings emphasize the necessity for enhanced international collaboration to enhance research output and translation.