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Review
. 2024 Sep 17;16(9):e69613.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.69613. eCollection 2024 Sep.

Parkinson's Disease Treatment: A Bibliometric Analysis

Billy McBenedict  1 , Wilhelmina N Hauwanga  2 , Gustavo Ienaco  3 , Dulci Petrus  4 , Syeda Sukaina Kazmi  5 , Jonatha Machado Lima  1 , Barakat B Onabanjo  1 , Asaju Felix  6 , Sujood Awadelseed  1 , Shivadeva Selvamani  7 , Phoh Wen Cher  8 , Bruno Lima Pessôa  1
Affiliations
Review

Parkinson's Disease Treatment: A Bibliometric Analysis

Billy McBenedict et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder marked by motor symptoms like bradykinesia, tremor, rigidity, and postural instability. Patients also experience non-motor symptoms that greatly affect their quality of life. The global prevalence of PD is increasing, especially among the elderly, necessitating effective treatment strategies. This review provides an overview of the current treatment modalities for PD, including pharmacological and surgical interventions, and employs a bibliometric analysis to evaluate the trends and impact of scientific research in this field. A comprehensive search of the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database was conducted on July 12, 2024, yielding 3,724 publications related to PD treatment. Bibliometric analysis was performed using Biblioshiny and VOSviewer to assess publication trends, impact, and collaborative networks. Metrics such as the number of publications, citations, h-index, and country/institutional contributions were analyzed to identify key areas of focus and influential research in PD treatment. The analysis revealed a significant increase in PD research output from 2000 onwards, peaking between 2011 and 2016. The United States led in research production, followed by China, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Key researchers included Lang AE, Okun MS, and Lozano AM, with the University of Toronto, University of California System, and Harvard University being the top contributing institutions. The study identified major trends in pharmacological treatments, such as dopamine replacement therapy and deep brain stimulation (DBS) as the most common surgical intervention. Bibliometric analysis highlighted significant international collaborations and identified influential studies shaping the current understanding and treatment of PD. This bibliometric analysis elucidated the trends and impacts of scientific contributions, emphasizing the prolific output from leading countries and institutions in relation to the treatment of Parkinson's disease. Take-home messages for the conclusion of our study are as follows: (1) this study found a substantial increase in Parkinson's disease (PD) research output from 2000 onwards, peaking around 2017-2018, (2) noted a decline in publication output post-2020, (3) the United States had the highest research output, followed by significant contributions from countries like China, Canada, and the United Kingdom, (4) international collaborations played a vital role in advancing PD research, (5) key researchers in the field were Lang AE, Okun MS, and Lozano AM, (6) and established institutions like the University of Toronto, Johns Hopkins University and Harvard University made substantial contributions to the field, emphasizing the role of leading academic centers in driving PD research.

Keywords: bibliometric analysis; deep brain stimulation; neurodegenerative disorders; parkinson's disease; research trends.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. The number of scientific articles published per year from 1970.
Figure 2
Figure 2. The trend for the average citations per year for published articles on Parkinson's treatment research from 1975.
Figure 3
Figure 3. The global distribution of scientific research output related to the treatment of Parkinson's disease.
Darker shades represent higher number of publications, while lighter shades represent lower number of publications.
Figure 4
Figure 4. Country production over time of scientific research output related to the treatment of Parkinson's disease.
Figure 5
Figure 5. Country collaboration in scientific research related to Parkinson's disease treatment.
Generated with Vosviewer. * Each node represents a country, with the size of the node indicating the volume of research output and the lines connecting nodes representing collaborative efforts between countries*.
Figure 6
Figure 6. The network visualization map illustrates collaborations between countries in the field of Parkinson's disease treatment.
Each node represents a country, and the links between nodes indicate citation ties*.
Figure 7
Figure 7. The network visualization map illustrates collaborations between researchers in the field of Parkinson's disease treatment.
Each node represents an author, and the links between nodes indicate co-authorship ties*.
Figure 8
Figure 8. The network visualization map illustrates collaborations among authors in the field of Parkinson's disease treatment.
Each node represents an author, and the links between nodes indicate citation ties*.
Figure 9
Figure 9. Top five institutional production over time of scientific research output related to the treatment of Parkinson's disease.
Figure 10
Figure 10. The network visualization map illustrates collaborations between institutions in the field of Parkinson's disease treatment.
Each node represents an institution, and the links between nodes indicate co-authorship ties*.
Figure 11
Figure 11. The network visualization map illustrates collaborations between institutions in the field of Parkinson's disease treatment.
Each node represents an institution, and the links between nodes indicate citation ties*.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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