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. 2024 Jul 19;103(29):e38777.
doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000038777.

Global trends and hotspots related to whiplash injury: A visualization study

Yaqi He  1 , Jinpeng Gao, Yang Liu, Jinghua Qian
Affiliations

Global trends and hotspots related to whiplash injury: A visualization study

Yaqi He et al. Medicine (Baltimore). .

Abstract

Whiplash injury, commonly occurring as a result of car accidents, represents a significant public health concern. However, to date, no comprehensive study has utilized bibliometric approaches to analyze all published research on whiplash injury. Therefore, our study aims to provide an overview of current trends and the global research landscape using bibliometrics and visualization software. We performed a bibliometric analysis of the data retrieved and extracted from the Web of Science Core Collection database in whiplash injury research up to December 31, 2022. Research articles were assessed for specific characteristics, such as year of publication, country/region, institution, author, journal, field of study, references, and keywords. We identified 1751 research articles in the analysis and observed a gradual growth in the number of publications and references. The United States (379 articles, 21.64%), Canada (309 articles, 17.65%), and Australia (280 articles, 16.00%) emerged as the top-contributing countries/regions. Among institutions, the University of Queensland (169 articles, 9.65%) and the University of Alberta (106 articles, 6.05%) demonstrated the highest productivity. "Whiplash," "Neck Pain," "Cervical Spine Disease," and "Whiplash-associated Disorders" are high-frequency keywords. Furthermore, emerging areas of research interest included traumatic brain injury and mental health issues following whiplash injury. The number of papers and citations has increased significantly over the past 2 decades. Whiplash injury research is characteristically multidisciplinary in approach, involving the fields of rehabilitation, neuroscience, and spinal disciplines. By identifying current research trends, our study offers valuable insights to guide future research endeavors in this field.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no funding and conflicts of interest to disclose.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Flowchart.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Number of publications in the field of whiplash injuries from 1991 to 2022.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Distribution of countries with a publication volume >5.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Visualization map of national research cooperation.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Visualization graph of organizational research cooperation.
Figure 6.
Figure 6.
The second mock examination matrix of mechanism and keywords.
Figure 7.
Figure 7.
Visualization graph of researcher collaboration.
Figure 8.
Figure 8.
Author cited graph.
Figure 9.
Figure 9.
Keyword clustering diagram.
Figure 10.
Figure 10.
Graph of burst words.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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