COVID-19 from a rheumatology perspective: bibliometric and altmetric analysis

Regional and National Trends in Tuberculosis Research in South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation Countries: Post-COVID-19 Pandemic Machine Learning Factorial Analysis

BACKGROUND

The number of tuberculosis (TB)-related morbidities and mortalities is still high in the South-east Asian region. This study was performed to characterize and visualize the post-coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) TB research in South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).

METHODS

The Web of Science Core Collection database was utilized. A total of 4822 documents were included in the final analysis according to the predefined eligibility criteria. The data were exported to the R package and VOSviewer software for factorial analysis and network visualization, respectively.

RESULTS

The included documents were published in English between 2020 and 2024 in 1255 journals. These documents were authored by 17005 authors (3.53 authors/document). The authors collaboration index was noticed 3.61. In total, 74.16% documents were published as the article. The highest number of documents were published in 2022 (n = 1089). The documents published in 2020 received the highest number of mean total citations per article (n = 8.64). The most published journal was Cureus Journal of Medical Science (n = 228). The most prolific author was Gupta A (n = 115). The most active institution was the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (n = 587). The top most trending topics were Mycobacterium tuberculosis, TB elimination, molecular docking, extrapulmonary TB, Cartridge Based Nucleic Acid Amplification Test, and multidrug resistance. India was the most productive country and had the strongest research collaboration with the United States of America (USA), the United Kingdom (UK), and South Africa. Pakistan was mainly collaborating with the USA, the UK, Saudi Arabia, and China. The India and Pakistan collaboration was observed only in 66 documents.

CONCLUSION

There is a poor output of scientific publication on TB in most SAARC countries. However, it is recognized that India has produced the highest number of scientific publications. The detection of undiagnosed post-COVID-19 pandemic TB cases is crucial to control further cases in the region. An effective regional cooperation should be established among institutions, universities, and countries to achieve the World Health Organization End TB goals.

Systemic sclerosis associated respiratory involvement: Scopus-based analysis of articles in 2013-2022

BACKGROUND

Systemic sclerosis (SSc), a complex autoimmune disorder, manifests as a convergence of rheumatologic, dermatologic, and pulmonary challenges. Among the severe complications contributing to morbidity and mortality are SSc Associated Interstitial Lung Disease (SSc-ILD) and pulmonary hypertension. Over the past decade, research on pulmonary involvement in SSc has intensified, leading to a heightened understanding of its pathogenesis, diagnostic methods, and therapeutic strategies.

AIM

This study aims to provide a data-driven overview of the current state of systemic sclerosis research, identifying emerging trends and fostering informed decisions regarding resource allocation and research priorities.

METHODS

A literature search was conducted in the Scopus database, using MESH keywords such as "systemic sclerosis" AND "lungs" OR "pulmonary hypertension" OR "interstitial lung disease". After applying exclusion criteria, a thorough analysis was performed, considering factors such as document category, authorship, journal source, citation frequency, country of publication, language, and keywords. The bibliometric analysis utilized Scopus as the preferred database, leveraging its extensive coverage, user-friendly interface, and commitment to data accuracy. Visual networks were constructed using VOSviewer software to map the relationships between keywords, countries, and authors. Altmetric Attention Scores (AAS) were employed to assess the social impact of articles.

RESULTS

The analysis revealed a total of 2538 scholarly items, with 55.7% identified as open access. The USA (n = 532), Italy (n = 458), France (n = 304), Japan (n = 271), and the UK (n = 236) emerged as primary contributors, with English being the predominant language. A notable upward tendency in annual publication and citation scores indicated sustained interest and relevance in SSc-ILD research. The top journals, including Rheumatology United Kingdom, Clinical and Experimental Rheumatology, Clinical Rheumatology, Arthritis and Rheumatology, and Journal of Rheumatology, played a pivotal role in scholarly output. Original Articles (n = 1795; 70.7%) constituted the majority of publications, followed by Reviews, Letters, Notes, and Editorials. The analysis of publication impact within different scholarly formats revealed varying citation patterns, with Original Articles and Reviews leading in influence. The identification of influential research hubs and key contributors provided insights into collaborative efforts and geographic distribution. A strong correlation (rho = 0.612, p < 0.001) was observed between the quantity of Mendeley readers and the citations received by scholarly articles.

CONCLUSION

This bibliometric analysis offers a comprehensive overview of SSc-ILD research, highlighting its dynamic and interdisciplinary nature. The surge in publications, citation scores, and the identification of key contributors underscore the continued relevance and impact of this field. The nuanced relationships between social attention and scientific recognition, as revealed by Mendeley readership and AAS, contribute to a deeper understanding of the multifaceted nature of scholarly impact.

Research landscape on COVID-19 and liver dysfunction: A bibliometric analysis

BACKGROUND

The global spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, responsible for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), poses a significant risk to public health. Beyond the respiratory issues initially associated with the condition, severe cases of COVID-19 can also lead to complications in other organs, including the liver. Patients with severe COVID-19 may exhibit various clinical signs of liver dysfunction, ranging from minor elevations in liver enzymes without symptoms to more serious cases of impaired liver function. Liver damage is more commonly observed in patients with severe or critical forms of the disease.

AIM

To present the research landscape on COVID-19 and liver dysfunction while also offering valuable insights into the prominent areas of interest within this particular domain.

METHODS

On 18 February 2023, Scopus was utilised to conduct a comprehensive exploration of the relationship between COVID-19 and the liver dysfunction. The investigation encompassed the period from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2022. Primary sources were meticulously examined and organised in a Microsoft Excel 2013 spreadsheet, categorised by journal, institution, funding agency, country and citation type. VOSviewer version 1.6.18 was employed to explore the prominent topics and knowledge network related to the subject.

RESULTS

There were 2336 publications on COVID-19 and liver dysfunction analysed in this study, of which 558 were published in 2020, 891 in 2021 and 887 in 2022. Researchers from 111 different countries participated in the retrieved documents. The United States contributed the most studies, with 497 documents, representing 21.28% of the total, followed by China with 393 documents (16.82%) and Italy with 255 documents (10.92%). In the context of research related to COVID-19 and the liver, co-occurrence analysis identified three distinct clusters of topics: (1) 'COVID-19 vaccines in liver transplant recipients'; (2) 'liver function tests as a predictor of the severity and clinical outcomes in hospitalised patients'; and (3) 'care of patients with liver disease during the COVID-19 pandemic'.

CONCLUSION

This bibliometric study provides a comprehensive overview of liver-related publications in COVID-19 research over the past 3 years. This study highlights the significant contributions of high-income nations, particularly the United States, China, and Italy, to the production of liver-related scholarly literature in this field. Most of the articles focused on liver dysfunction in patients with COVID-19 and the implications of the virus for gastroenterologists and hepatologists.

Systemic lupus erythematosus in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic: infection, vaccination, and impact on disease management

Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) form a vulnerable group in terms of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on disease management. We conducted this overview by searches through Medline/PubMed, Scopus, and the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). The prevalence and severity of COVID-19, efficacy of COVID-19 vaccination, impact on the management of SLE, and the attitudes of SLE patients to COVID-19 and vaccination were explored. After screening and due exclusions, 198 studies were included for the final review. Patients with SLE have a greater risk of acquiring COVID-19 (0.6-22%) and related hospitalization (30%), severe disease (13.5%), and death (6.5%) than the general population. Older age, male gender, comorbidities, moderate or high disease activity, and glucocorticoid, rituximab, and cyclophosphamide use are associated with unfavorable outcomes, whereas methotrexate and belimumab use showed no association with outcomes. COVID-19 vaccines are safe in SLE with minimal risk of severe flares (< 2%). Vaccine efficacy is negatively associated with glucocorticoids. The overall attitude of patients towards vaccination is positive (54-90%). The pandemic has negatively affected access to medical care, hospitalizations, procurement of drugs, employment, and the mental health of patients which need to be addressed as part of holistic care in SLE. Key Points • Lupus patients are at a greater risk of acquiring COVID-19, related hospitalization,  severe  disease, and death than the general population. • COVID-19 vaccines are relatively safe for lupus patients with minimal risk of severe flares. • Lupus patients' attitude towards COVID-19 vaccination is predominantly positive.

Mapping the landscape and structure of global research on binge eating disorder: Visualization and bibliometric analysis

BACKGROUND

Binge-eating disorder (BED) is a clinical syndrome and is considered the most common type of eating disorder. However, our understanding of the global performance and progress of BED research is limited.

AIM

To describe and perform a bibliometric analysis of the state of BED research.

METHODS

The term ‘Binge eating’ was searched in the title throughout the previous year’s up to December 31, 2020. We searched the Scopus and Reference Citation Analysis for publications on Binge eating. The VOSviewer software version 1.6.17 was used to produce the network visualization map of the most frequent author, collaborative relationships between countries/regions, and to determine the hotspots related to binge eating research. In addition, conventional bibliometric indicators were generated.

RESULTS

The search strategy found 2713 total articles and an average of 62 articles per year. Among them, ‘Article’ represented 82.49% of the publications (n = 2238 articles) and was the most frequent type, followed by reviews (n = 243; 8.96%). The number of publications increased steadily during the last decade of the study period. One hundred and thirty-two countries contributed to binge eating research, with 1495 (55.11%) articles published in the United States, followed by Italy with 256 (9.44%), the United Kingdom with 183 (6.75%), and Germany with 182 (6.71%). Currently, the main hot topics related to BED are ‘type of treatment and management and treatment provided to BED”; “processes and pathways to binge eating”; and ‘diagnosis, signs and symptoms, comorbidities and prevalence and associated factors with BED’.

CONCLUSION

The number of publications has increased noticeably during the previous decade. There are indeed relatively few publications on BED from low-and middle-income nations, so much is to be learned from the experience of all countries. Studies on this topic are critical in all countries to discover risk factors and effective intervention measures. Although our findings are preliminary, they imply that the future prospects for interventions aimed at BED management are bright, focusing on complex models of care and long-term maintenance of therapeutic gains.

Bioinformatics and System Biology Approach to Identify the Influences of COVID-19 on Rheumatoid Arthritis

Background

Severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID -19) has led to a rapid increase in mortality worldwide. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) was a high-risk factor for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, whereas the molecular mechanisms underlying RA and CVOID-19 are not well understood. The objectives of this study were to analyze potential molecular mechanisms and identify potential drugs for the treatment of COVID-19 and RA using bioinformatics and a systems biology approach.

Methods

Two Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) sets extracted from GSE171110 and GSE1775544 datasets were intersected to generate common DEGs, which were used for functional enrichment, pathway analysis, and candidate drugs analysis.

Results

A total of 103 common DEGs were identified in the two datasets between RA and COVID-19. A protein-protein interaction (PPI) was constructed using various combinatorial statistical methods and bioinformatics tools. Subsequently, hub genes and essential modules were identified from the PPI network. In addition, we performed functional analysis and pathway analysis under ontological conditions and found that there was common association between RA and progression of COVID-19 infection. Finally, transcription factor-gene interactions, protein-drug interactions, and DEGs-miRNAs coregulatory networks with common DEGs were also identified in the datasets.

Conclusion

We successfully identified the top 10 hub genes that could serve as novel targeted therapy for COVID-19 and screened out some potential drugs useful for COVID-19 patients with RA.

Global Trends of Nutrition in Cancer Research: A Bibliometric and Visualized Analysis Study over the Past 10 Years

The increasing application of nutrition in cancer management has attracted a great deal of research interest in recent decades. Nutritional therapies, interventions, and assessments were known to have positive effects on reducing side effects from cancer therapy. In order to identify the global research output for nutrition in cancer research, a bibliometric analysis during the past 10 years was conducted to evaluate the current status of trends, gaps, and research directions as no bibliometric studies have been conducted regarding nutrition and cancer. After the data collection, a total of 1521 articles were chosen for this bibliometric study. The visualization analysis was performed with VOSviewer. The number of publications has grown continuously since a substantial spark was identified in 2019. The majority of the authors’ affiliations were in European countries. Four cancer types were recognized among the top 10 author keywords; they were breast cancer, head and neck cancer, colorectal cancer, and gastric cancer. The Nutrients journal was the most popular among the authors as the journal published 195 articles related to the topic. In conclusion, providing evidence-based nutritional solutions for various types of cancer is essential to nutrition and cancer research. Since it is presumed to have a growing number of cancer patients worldwide with the aging population, it is vital to continuously generate research finding effective nutrition therapies for cancer patients.

Relationship between modifiable lifestyle factors and chronic kidney disease: a bibliometric analysis of top-cited publications from 2011 to 2020

BACKGROUND

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects 8 to 16% of the world's population and is one of the top ten important drivers of increasing disease burden. Apart from genetic predisposition, lifestyle factors greatly contribute to the incidence and progression of CKD. The current bibliometric analysis aims to characterize the current focus and emerging trends of the research about the impact of modifiable lifestyle factors on CKD.

METHODS

We searched articles addressing the impact of modifiable lifestyle factors on the incidence and/or progression of CKD, published between 2011 and 2020, from the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) database. An adjusted citation index, which considered both the original citation count and publication year, was derived for the selection of most-cited publications. Publishing trends, co-authorship network, keywords, and research hotspots were analyzed and visualized.

RESULTS

Among the top 100 most influential articles, 32 were narrative reviews, 16 systematic reviews and/or meta-analysis, 44 clinical research, and 8 basic research. The United States occupied a dominant position in the perspective of article numbers and international partnerships, followed by European countries. The modifiable factors that drew the most and constant attention over the decade were diet or nutrition management reported in 63 papers, followed by obesity or body mass index (n = 27), and physical activity or exercises (n = 8). Alcohol consumption, fish oil, chain fatty-acids, and water-soluble vitamins were emerging hotspots identified in the recent most cited publications.

CONCLUSIONS

Based on the bibliometric analysis of the most influential articles, our study provides a comprehensive description of publishing trends and research focus over a decade in the field of lifestyle factors' impact on CKD. Diet, obesity, and physical activity were factors receiving the most attention in this topic.