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Review
. 2025 May 10:19:3805-3825.
doi: 10.2147/DDDT.S519048. eCollection 2025.

A Bibliometric Analysis of Microneedle-Mediated Drug Delivery: Trends, Hotspots, and Future Directions

Weiyi Xiang  1   2 , Xian Jiang #  1   2 , Linghong Guo #  1   2
Affiliations
Review

A Bibliometric Analysis of Microneedle-Mediated Drug Delivery: Trends, Hotspots, and Future Directions

Weiyi Xiang et al. Drug Des Devel Ther. .

Abstract

Purpose: Microneedles can physically penetrate the stratum corneum, creating micropores on the skin, and allowing for drug delivery through direct diffusion, injection, or other methods. As a novel drug delivery method, it possesses significant application potential. This study uses bibliometric analysis to explore the research hotspots and development trends of microneedle-mediated drug delivery.

Methods: Relevant research articles on microneedle-mediated drug delivery published between 1998 and 2024 in the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database were retrieved. Data analysis and visualization were performed using VOSviewer, CiteSpace, Scimago Graphica, and Pajek, enabling the prediction of research trends in microneedle-mediated drug delivery.

Results: In general, research on microneedle-mediated drug delivery has shown a continuous increase. China and the United States are the leading countries in this field of study. Notably, Ryan F. Donnelly (n=224) is the most prominent contributor to this field. The current core research directions include: disease treatment, enhancement of transdermal absorption performance of microneedles, vaccine delivery, and new materials and technologies for microneedle manufacturing.

Conclusion: Microneedle-mediated drug delivery, as a novel technology and method, holds significant research value and application potential. However, further strengthening of international collaboration and the clinical translation of research findings are needed.

Keywords: materials science; percutaneous drug delivery; research trends; vaccine delivery.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Publications screening flowchart.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Annual output of research of microneedles and drug delivery.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Geographical distribution of retrieved articles in microneedles and drug delivery.
Figure 4
Figure 4
The visualization of countries on research of microneedles and drug delivery.
Figure 5
Figure 5
The growth trends of the top 10 nations/regions in microneedles and drug delivery.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Cluster density visualization map of institutions on microneedles and drug delivery.
Figure 7
Figure 7
The visualization of journals on research of microneedles and drug delivery.
Figure 8
Figure 8
The visualization of co-cited journals on research of microneedles and drug delivery.
Figure 9
Figure 9
The visualization of authors on research of microneedles and drug delivery.
Figure 10
Figure 10
The visualization of co-cited Authors on research of microneedles and drug delivery.
Figure 11
Figure 11
The visualization of co-cited references on the research of microneedles and drug delivery.
Figure 12
Figure 12
Keyword cluster analysis on research of microneedles and drug delivery.
Figure 13
Figure 13
The top 25 burst words in research of microneedles and drug delivery.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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