Alzheimer's disease and insomnia: a bibliometric study and visualization analysis

Abstract

Background: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the fastest-growing neurodegenerative disorder globally, with patient numbers expected to rise to 130 million by 2050. Insomnia, a prevalent comorbidity, exhibits a bidirectional relationship with AD: insomnia accelerates AD pathology, while AD worsens sleep disorders. This relationship has emerged as a key area of research. Current mechanisms involve oxidative stress, inflammatory responses, and glymphatic system dysfunction, yet a comprehensive review of these processes remains absent.

Objective: To conduct a visual analysis of the relationship between Alzheimer's disease and insomnia using CiteSpace.

Methods: Literature on "insomnia" and "Alzheimer's disease" published between January 1, 2000, and October 31, 2024, was retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection. CiteSpace and VOSviewer software were used to analyze institutions, authors, and keywords.

Results: A total of 1,907 articles were analyzed, revealing a consistent upward trend in publication volume. The United States and the Mayo Clinic were identified as leading contributors, producing 704 and 57 publications, respectively. Boeve Bradley F the most prolific author contributed 30 publications. Collaboration was actively observed among countries, institutions, and authors. High-frequency keywords identified were "Parkinson's disease," "cognitive impairment," and "sleep behavior disorder." Emerging research areas are likely to focus on "sleep quality" and the "glymphatic system."

Conclusion: This study is the first to apply bibliometric analysis to identify three key trends in AD and insomnia research: the dominance of the United States and Mayo Clinic, strong international collaboration, and a focus on critical areas such as cognitive impairment, the glymphatic system, and sleep interventions. Insomnia may accelerate AD progression via multiple pathways, indicating that enhancing sleep quality could provide new strategies for early intervention. Future research should prioritize advancing the clinical translation of sleep interventions and investigating the mechanisms of the glymphatic system.

Keywords: Alzheimer's disease; CiteSpace; VOSviewer; bibliometrics; insomnia; visual analysis.

Figure 1

Flowchart of data screening and bibliometric analysis.

Figure 2

Distribution of documents by type.

Figure 3

Annual publication trends. Shows the global publication volume from 2000 to 2024, with the fitted formula y = 6.3893x.

Figure 4

Collaboration network among countries and regions. The size of the nodes represents publication volume, while the thickness of the connecting lines indicates the strength of collaboration (TLS ≥ 10). Only 48 countries with publication volumes ≥5 are displayed. Six collaboration clusters, each represented by a different color, were formed, with a total connection strength of 1,753.

Figure 5

Institutional collaboration network. The size of the nodes represents publication volume, while the thickness of the connecting lines indicates collaboration strength (TLS ≥ 10). There are 2,862 institutions in total, with 216 institutions displaying a publication volume of 5 or more. Fourteen collaboration clusters, each represented by a different color, were formed, with a total connection strength of 1,913.

Figure 6

Author collaboration network. There are 9,560 authors in total. The size of the nodes represents publication volume, while the thickness of the connecting lines indicates collaboration strength (TLS ≥ 10). Only 96 authors with a publication volume of 5 or more are displayed. Eight collaboration clusters, each represented by a different color, were formed, with a total connection strength of 1,043.

Figure 7

Keyword co-occurrence map.

Figure 8

Keyword clustering map. The map illustrates ten distinct research clusters, each represented by a unique color. Cluster #0 dementia, Cluster #1 sleep deprivation, Cluster #2 dementia with lewy bodies, Cluster #3 locus coeruleus, Cluster #4 circadian rhythms, Cluster #5 fatal familial insomnia, Cluster #6 toxicity, Cluster #7 rem sleep, Cluster #8 Alzheimer's disease, Cluster #9 mendelian randomization.

Figure 9

Citation burst analysis of the top 25 keywords. Since 2021, three keywords—“sleep quality,” “glymphatic system,” and “sleep disorder”—have seen a significant increase in citations.

Figure 10

Timeline map of keywords related to Alzheimer's disease and insomnia (2000–2024).