A bibliometric of research trends in acupuncture for spinal cord injury: Quantitative and qualitative analyses

Frontiers in Neurology, 2022 · DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2022.936744 · Published: September 15, 2022

Spinal Cord Injury Alternative Medicine Neurology

Simple Explanation

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a severe condition that often results from trauma, tumors, or infections, leading to a high disability rate and significant psychological and economic burdens for patients and their families. Acupuncture, as a rehabilitation therapy, can free meridians and harmonize yin and yang by stimulating specific acupoints on the body’s surface, which has shown efficacy in treating post-SCI complications. Bibliometrics is a cross-cutting science that applies mathematics and statistics to the quantitative analysis of published scientific literature to measure the impact, interrelationships, and trends of publications in a certain field.

Study Duration

1979 to 2021

Participants

Not specified

Evidence Level

Not specified

Key Findings

1
The number of publications related to acupuncture for SCI showed a fluctuating upward trend from 1979 to 2021.
2
China and the United States were hub countries for related publications and had extensive cooperation with other countries.
3
Electroacupuncture was identified as the most widely used technique in acupuncture research for SCI.

Research Summary

This study conducted quantitative and qualitative analyses on 213 publications in the field of acupuncture for SCI in the WOS core database from 1979 to 2021. Quantitative analysis shows a fluctuating upward trend in the number of publications and the average annual citation rate in this area. In the qualitative analysis section, we analyzed 25 publications with an annual citation rate of no <2.5. These publications are divided into three categories based on content, including reviews, experimental research papers, and clinical research papers.

Practical Implications

Research Direction

Provides guidance for understanding and predicting future research directions in acupuncture for SCI.

Treatment Strategies

Highlights the efficacy and mechanisms of electroacupuncture for neuropathic pain after SCI, suggesting it as a key area for further development.

Clinical Applications

Indicates the expanding use of acupuncture for various complications after SCI and in veterinary medicine, suggesting potential for broader applications.

Study Limitations

1
The bibliometric analysis did not include non-English databases.
2
Qualitative analysis is subjective to the researcher, and different observation perspectives may lead to different conclusions.
3
The publication of academic research lags behind clinical practice.

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