Global trends and hotspots in research of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE): a bibliometric analysis from 2010 to 2020

Global Research Hotspots in Venous Thromboembolism Anticoagulation: A Knowledge-Map Analysis from 2012 to 2021

Background

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a common cardiovascular disease that seriously threatens human lives. Anticoagulant therapy is considered to be the cornerstone of VTE treatment. An increasing number of studies has been updated in the VTE anticoagulation field. However, no bibliometric analyses have assessed these publications comprehensively. Therefore, our study aimed to analyze the global status, hotspots, and trends of anticoagulant therapy for VTE.

Methods

The relevant literature on VTE anticoagulation published between 2012 and 2021 was retrieved and collected from the Web of Science Core Collection database. VOSviewer, Cooccurrence Matrix Builder, gCLUTO, and some online visualization tools were adopted for bibliometric analysis.

Results

A total of 15,152 related articles were retrieved. In recent years, the research output of VTE anticoagulation gradually increased. The United States was the most productive country. International cooperation is concentrated in North America and Europe; the most influential documents, journals, authors, and organizations were also from these two continents. Research hotspots mainly focus on clinical guidelines, VTE in special populations, non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants (NOACs), and parenteral anticoagulation. The research frontiers and trends include the assessment of NOACs and the antithrombotic management of VTE complicated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Conclusion

This bibliometric analysis provides a systematic overview of the VTE anticoagulation research, which will facilitate researchers to better understand the situation of VTE anticoagulation. Future studies should be dedicated to NOACs application and VTE-combined COVID-19 patients.

Bibliometric Examination of Global Scientific Research about Carbapenem-Resistant Acinetobacter Baumannii (CRAB)

This review paper presents a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of the global scientific research pertaining to carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) from the years 1996 to 2023. The review employs a systematic approach to evaluate the trends, patterns, and collaborative networks within the CRAB research landscape, shedding light on its substantial global health implications. An analysis of the Scopus database reveals that the earliest publication within the CRAB research domain dates back to 1996. By conducting a meticulous examination of publication output, citation trends, author affiliations, and keyword distributions, this paper provides valuable insights into the evolution of research themes and the emergence of new areas of interest concerning CRAB. The findings of this bibliometric analysis prominently feature the most influential author within this field, namely, Higgins PG, who has contributed a remarkable 39 documents to CRAB research. It is noteworthy that China leads in terms of the quantity of published research articles in this domain, whereas the United States occupies the foremost position about citations within the CRAB research sphere. Furthermore, a more profound exploration of the data yields a heightened understanding of the current status of CRAB research, emphasizing potential avenues for future investigations and underscoring the imperative need for collaborative initiatives to address the challenges posed by this antibiotic-resistant pathogen.

Global Trends in Research Regarding Macrophages Associated with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Bibliometric Analysis from 2011 to 2022

Purpose

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a prevalent respiratory condition characterized by chronic airway inflammation, where macrophages from the innate immune system may exert a pivotal influence. Our study aimed to summarize the present state of knowledge and to identify the focal points and emerging developments regarding macrophages associated with COPD through bibliometrics.

Methods

Publications regarding research on macrophages associated with COPD from January 1, 2011, to January 1, 2022, were retrieved from the Science Citation Index-Expanded (SCI-E) which is part of the Web of Science database. In total, 1521 publications were analyzed using bibliometric methodology. VOSviewer was used to analyze the annual publications, countries, institutions, authors, journals, and research hotspots.

Results

Based on the bibliometric analysis, publications relating to macrophages associated with COPD tended to increase from 2011 to 2022. The United States was the largest producer and most influential country in this field. Research during the past decade has focused on inflammation in the lungs. Most previous studies have mainly focused on the mechanisms that promote the initiation and progression of COPD. Macrophage-related oxidative stress and immunity, communication between macrophages and epithelial cells, and interventions for acute exacerbations have become the focus of more recent studies and will become a hot topic in the future.

Conclusion

Global research on macrophage-associated COPD has been growing rapidly in the past decade. The hot topics in this field gradually tended to shift focus from "inflammation" to "oxidative stress", "epithelial-cells", and "exacerbations". The significance of macrophages in coordinating immune responses, interacting with other cells, and exhibiting dysregulated capacities has attracted increasing attention to COPD pathogenesis. The adoption of new technologies may provide a more promising and comprehensive understanding of the specific role of macrophages in COPD in the future.

Updates on the Status of Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacterales in Lebanon

Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) pathogens have been increasingly isolated and reported in Lebanon. Several studies have been published over the last two decades about the CRE situation in the country. However, compared to the worldwide data, those studies are scarce and mostly restricted to single center studies. In this review, we aim to present a comprehensive and reliable report illustrating the current situation regarding CRE in Lebanon. Variable studies have shown an increasing pattern of carbapenem resistance in Enterobacterales since the first reports of CRE isolates in 2007 and 2008. Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae were the most detected ones. The OXA-48 class D carbapenemases were the most prevalent carbapenemases among CRE isolates. Moreover, the emergence of other carbapenemases like the NDM class B carbapenemase has been noticed. Strict infection control measures in hospitals, including the identification of CRE carriers, are needed in Lebanese hospitals since carriage is a potential risk for the spread of CRE in healthcare settings. The dissemination of CRE in the community is noticed and attributed to multiple causes, such as the refugee crisis, water contamination, and antimicrobial misuse. In conclusion, strict infection control measures in healthcare settings, in addition to accurate antimicrobial stewardship program implementation, are urgently needed.

Bibliometric analysis of global research on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and health risk between 2002 and 2021

During the last 20 years, the association between polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and health risk has become one of the hotspots in the fields of public health and the environment. A bibliometric study of 1392 research articles retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) published between 2002 and 2021 was performed to give an in-depth statistical evaluation of research progress and future trends on PAHs and health risk (PHR). According to the findings, the annual output of significant scientific papers increased exponentially. China ranked first among the 86 nations in terms of the number of publications (NP), followed by the USA and India. Logistic regression analysis showed that there was a positive relationship between the second tertile of 180-day usage count (AOR = 1.62; 95% CI: 1.16-2.26) and increased odds of open access publishing after adjustment for the confounders, indicating that open access papers on PHR were more preferred over the preceding 6 months than non-open access articles. The most popular terms were "PAHs," "risk assessment," and "source identification." According to the bibliometric study, the research hotspots that require more exploration include identifying PAH sources in media such as soil, water, dust, and food and evaluating their linkages to health hazards using appropriate risk models. Understanding the environmental behavior, bioavailability, and health concerns of PAHs and their derivatives in various media is critical for environmental and public health protection. This paper provides an overview of current research status and future perspectives for PHR research.

Geographic patterns of global isolates of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae and the activity of ceftazidime/avibactam, meropenem/vaborbactam, and comparators against these isolates: Results from the Antimicrobial Testing Leadership and Surveillance (ATLAS) program, 2020

Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) are a growing threat to public health. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CR-KP) and the associated carbapenemase genes using data from the Antimicrobial Testing Leadership and Surveillance (ATLAS) program, 2020. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) were determined using the broth microdilution method, and carbapenemase genes were detected using multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute breakpoints were used for interpretation of susceptibility. A total of 6753 K. pneumoniae isolates were collected from 57 countries in six regions worldwide. Of these, 1118 (16.6%) were CR-KP isolates. Among 1079 of the tested CR-KP isolates, 1017 (94.3%) had at least one of the class A (41.0%, 417/1017), B (39.3%, 400/1017), and D (38.8%, 395/1017) carbapenemase genes. The resistance patterns and associated genes differed significantly between the participating countries. India, Greece, and Argentina had the highest rates of carbapenem resistance. Susceptibility to the β-lactamase inhibitor combination, ceftazidime/avibactam was greater than that to meropenem/vaborbactam in all K. pneumoniae (93.7% vs. 90.3%, P < 0.05), CR-KP (63.3% vs. 41.5%, P < 0.05), CR-KP with genes for Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase-like carbapenemase (99.5% vs. 96.0%, P < 0.05), oxacillinase-like carbapenemase (98.7% vs. 4.6%, P < 0.05), and CR-KP without carbapenemase genes (93.5% vs. 79.0%, P < 0.05). CR-KP was the only exception with class B carbapenemase, with susceptibility rates of 1.4% and 9.4% to ceftazidime/avibactam and meropenem/vaborbactam, respectively (P < 0.05). Overall, surveillance results are important for guiding empirical antimicrobial therapy in different regions and for monitoring the global transmission of CR-KP with varying resistance mechanisms.

Bibliometric analysis of research trends in stem cell therapy for knee osteoarthritis over the period 2001–2021

Stem cell therapy is a promising treatment for knee osteoarthritis, but few bibliometric studies have been performed on the subject. Bibliometric analysis is helpful for identifying the most influential studies in a specific field and can evaluate the global research trends in stem cell therapy for knee osteoarthritis. The Web of Science Core Collection was searched for publications from 2001 to 2021. Publication performance was analyzed using several bibliometric parameters, including VOSviewer, to identify the research landscape of trends in topics, and CiteSpace was investigated to identify the keywords that have the strongest citation bursts. From 2001 to 2021, in total, 1,345 publications explored the research on stem cells in knee osteoarthritis. The United States contributed the largest number of publications and at the top list of international collaborations. Tokyo Medical and Dental University ranked first among institutions in the overall number of articles and citations. The journal of Osteoarthritis and Cartilage had the largest number of publications. Sekiya Ichiro was the most cited author, with 32 articles. The keywords with the most frequent occurrence were “osteoarthritis,” “mesenchymal stem cells,” and “cartilage,” in descending order of frequency. “fibroblast growth factor” and “extracellular vesicle” were the first and last searched theme terms, respectively. The number of publications on stem cells for knee osteoarthritis stays growing. Cartilage repair and paracrine function are current research hotspots for the stem cell therapy mechanism. Stem cell therapy has gradually advanced from basic research to the clinical application stage.

Trends of calcium silicate biomaterials in medical research and applications: A bibliometric analysis from 1990 to 2020

Background: Calcium silicate biomaterials (CSB) have witnessed rapid development in the past 30 years. This study aimed to accomplish a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of the published research literature on CSB for biomedical applications and explore the research hotspot and current status.

Methods: Articles related to CSB published in the last three decades (1990–2020) were retrieved from Web of Science Core Collection. The R bibliometrix package and VOSviewer were used to construct publication outputs and collaborative networking among authors, their institutes, countries, journals’ matrices and keywords plus.

Results: A total of 872 publications fulfilling the search criteria were included. CSB is mainly reported for bone tissues and dental applications. Among researchers, Chang J from Chinese Academy of Sciences and Gandolfi MG from the University of Bologna are the most productive author in these two fields, respectively. China was the leading contributor to the research on CSB in the medical field. A total of 130 keywords appeared more ten or more times were identified. The term “mineral trioxide aggregate” ranked first with 268 occurrences. The co-occurrence analysis identified three major clusters: CSB in dentistry, bone tissue and vitro bioactivity.

Conclusion: Calcium silicate biomaterials have a promising scope for various biomedical applications ranging from regeneration of hard tissues (bone and teeth) to skin, tumor, cardiac muscle and other soft tissues. This study may help researchers further understand the frontiers of the field.

Global research trend of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma from 2012 to 2022: a bibliometric analysis

Background

Esophageal cancer is currently a worldwide health problem. Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is the most common pathological type of esophageal cancer, and its treatment methods and therapeutic effects are relatively limited, so it also requires the unremitting efforts of basic and clinical researchers to overcome difficulties. Bibliometric analysis can help sort out global research trends and hotspots, but no bibliometric analysis of ESCC has been reported. Therefore, we performed this study to analyze the global trends and potential hotspots of ESCC to indicate future research directions.

Methods

The articles related to ESCC research were collected from the WoS Core Collection SCI-EXPANDED database from 2012 to 2022. The article information was analyzed by BiblioShiny and VOSviewer. Results were presented as bar and network visualization to describe the current trend of ESCC research. This was a retrospective study evaluating data that is publicly available online and at libraries and institutional review board approval, as such, was not demanded.

Results

The global publication trend illustrated a strong growth in the ESCC research field (annual growth rate of 11.4%) and the citation trend increased from an average of 2.98 citations per article per year in 2012 to an average of 3.84 citations per article per year in 2019. With the corresponding author’s country, China contributed the largest number (5,063 articles). The scholars from China and USA had the most collaboration (427 times). China had the largest number of institutions conducting ESCC research. Oncotarget, Oncology Letters, and Annals of Surgical Oncology published the most articles, while Cancer Research, International Journal of Cancer, and Journal of Clinical Oncology had the most local citations. Furthermore, the clinical research hotspots involved in the treatment of ESCC and the basic research hotspots involved in tumor malignant phenotype have received the most attention in recent years.

Conclusion

Our study demonstrated that the research of ESCC has developed rapidly in recent years, and the academic institutions in China have played a decisive role in this field. The global research purpose is to find effective therapies against ESCC, so some emerging hotspots related to ESCC treatment, such as endoscopic therapy, chemoradiotherapy, immunotherapy, tumor microenvironment, and the epithelial-mesenchymal transition will receive more attention and develop rapidly in the future.

Global research on Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea: A visualized study

BACKGROUND

Clostridioides (Clostridium) difficile (C. difficile) is still the most common cause of healthcare-associated diarrhoea and is increasing in prevalence as a community-acquired infection. In addition, the emergence of antibiotic resistance in C. difficile can increase the likelihood of the disease developing and/or spreading.

AIM

To provide an up-to-date picture of the trends in publications related to C. difficile infection, together with specific insights into hot-button issues in this field.

METHODS

Publications on C. difficile infections in the field of microbiology between 2001 and 2020 were identified from the Scopus database and Reference Citation Analysis. Bibliometric indicators were determined, including the number and type of publications, countries, affiliations, funding agencies, journals and citation patterns. VOSviewer was used to determine research areas and hot-button issues by identifying recurring terms with a high relative occurrence in the title and abstract.

RESULTS

A total of 8127 documents on ‘C. difficile-associated diarrhoea’ published between 2001 and 2020 were retrieved from the Scopus database. In the last decade, there has been a significant almost fourfold increase in the number of published papers on this topic. The United States was among the countries (44.11%) with the most publications, and the most involved institution was the University of Leeds in the United Kingdom (2.50%). Three clusters of research were identified and included ‘illness spectrum and severity, as well as the signs, symptoms and clinical pathogenesis of C. difficile’; ‘laboratory diagnosis and characterization of C. difficile’ and ‘risk factors for C. difficile infection’.

CONCLUSION

This study contains the most up-to-date and comprehensive data ever compiled in this field. More international research and cross-institutional collaborations are needed to address more global C. difficile concerns and to benefit from greater sharing of expertise, which will result in higher quality or more effective studies in the future. Promising research avenues in the near future may draw the attention of relevant scientists and funding organizations and open up novel C. difficile infection–based diagnosis and treatment approaches.

Framework Development for Clinical Comprehensive Evaluation of Drugs–a Study Protocol Using the Delphi Method and Analytic Hierarchy Process

Measuring the value of drugs to help make health-care decisions is a complex process which involves confronting trade-offs among multiple objectives. Although guidelines have been released for clinical comprehensive evaluation of drugs, refinement is required when considering a specific drug used in a specific disease. In this study, a two-level framework for clinical comprehensive evaluation of drugs will be developed. Six first-level indicators, including safety, efficacy, costs/cost-effectiveness, novelty, suitability, and accessibility will be evaluated according to the Chinese Guideline for Clinical Comprehensive Evaluation of Drugs. The second-level components involved in the framework will be first validated by the Delphi method and subsequently compared with one another to get the index weight based on the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). The scoring criteria of each component in the framework will also be determined by the Delphi method and AHP. The scoring criteria of components representing therapeutic effects will involve both score of therapeutic effects and score of evidence quality. With the evidence of the drug to be evaluated, the score of each component will be obtained according to the established scoring criteria, and the overall comprehensive score value of the drug will be calculated, which will assist the evidence-based decision making.

Abundance of colistin-resistant Escherichia coli harbouring mcr-1 and extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing E. coli co-harbouring blaCTX-M-55 or -65 with blaTEM isolates from chicken meat in Vietnam

Although the spread of plasmid-mediated antibiotic-resistant bacteria is a public health concern, food contamination with plasmid-mediated antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli in Vietnam has not been well investigated. This study aimed to describe the prevalence of colistin-resistant, carbapenem-resistant, and endemic bla_CTX-M in extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) producing E. coli isolates. Colistin and carbapenem-resistant ESBL-producing E. coli were isolated from chickens in Vietnam and Japan. Colistin-resistant and AmpC/ESBL-producing E. coli (52% and 93%, respectively) were detected in chickens from Vietnam, in comparison to 52.7%, AmpC/ESBL-producing E. coli found in chicken from Japan. Carbapenem-resistant E. coli has not been isolated in Vietnam and Japan. Genotyping revealed that colistin-resistant E. coli harboured mcr-1, and most of the AmpC/ESBL-related genes were bla_CTX-M-55 and bla_CTX-M-65 together with bla_TEM in Vietnamese chickens and bla_CMY-2 in Japanese chickens. Multi-drug resistance analysis showed that ESBL-producing E. coli isolates had greater resistance to quinolones, streptomycin, and chloramphenicol than colistin-resistant E. coli isolates from Vietnam, suggesting the selection of multiple antibiotic resistance genes in ESBL-producing E. coli. In conclusion, colistin-resistant E. coli was detected in approximately half of the chicken samples, the majority of which harboured mcr-1. The high prevalence of ESBL-producing E. coli has remained constant in the last 5 years. The predominant bla_CTX-M in ESBL-producing E. coli was bla_CTX-M-55 or bla_CTX-M-65, with the coexistence of bla_TEM in Vietnam. These results can be implemented in monitoring systems to overcome the development of antimicrobial resistance.

Current Stage in the Development of Klebsiella pneumoniae Vaccines

Klebsiella pneumoniae is a bacterium capable of colonizing mucous membranes, causing serious infections. Widespread antibiotic resistance in K. pneumoniae—either through intrinsic mechanisms or via acquisition from different species, especially in hospital environments—limits the therapeutic options against this pathogen, further aggravating the disease burden. To date, there are no vaccines available against K. pneumoniae infection. Although formulations based on capsular polysaccharides have been proposed, the high variability in capsular serotypes limits vaccine coverage. Recombinant vaccines based on surface exposed bacterial antigens are a promising alternative owing to their conservation among different serotypes and accessibility to the immune system. Many vaccine candidates have been proposed, some of which have reached clinical trials. The present review summarizes the current status of K. pneumoniae vaccine development. Different strategies including whole cell vaccines, outer membrane vesicles (OMVs), ribosome, polysaccharide, lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and protein-based formulations are discussed. The contribution of antibody and cell-mediated responses is also presented. In summary, K. pneumoniae vaccines are feasible and a promising strategy to prevent infections and to reduce the antimicrobial resistance burden worldwide.