Research trends and perspective of low-intensity pulsed ultrasound in orthopedic rehabilitation treatment based on Web of Science: A bibliometric analysis

Article type: Review Article

Authors: Zhang, Bin^{a; b; 1} | Zeng, Jiahao^{b; 1} | Zhang, Jiayi^{b; 1} | Song, Keyan^b | Kuang, Liang^a | Wu, Xiangbo^c | Zhao, Guang^b | Shang, Huijuan^b | Ni, Zhenhong^{d; *} | Chen, Lin^{a; *}

Affiliations: [a] Department of Wound Repair and Rehabilitation Medicine, Center of Bone Metabolism and Repair, Laboratory for Prevention and Rehabilitation of Training Injuries, State Key Laboratory of Trauma, Burns and Combined Injury, Trauma Center, Research Institute of Surgery, Daping Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China | [b] Rehabilitation Department, Key Specialty of Neck and Low Back Pain Rehabilitation, Xingcheng Special Duty Sanatorium, Xingcheng, Liaoning, China | [c] Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Xi-Jing Hospital, Air Force Medical University (Fourth Military Medical University), Xi’an, Shaanxi, China | [d] Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, State Key Laboratory of Trauma, Burns and Combined Injury, Daping Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding authors: Lin Chen, Department of Wound Repair and Rehabilitation Medicine, Center of Bone Metabolism and Repair, Laboratory for Prevention and Rehabilitation of Training Injuries, State Key Laboratory of Trauma, Burns and Combined Injury, Trauma Center, Research Institute of Surgery, Daping Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China. E-mail: linchen70@163.com; Zhenhong Ni, State Key Laboratory of Trauma, Burns and Combined Injury, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Daping Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China. E-mail: nizhenhong1986@163.com.

Note: [1] These authors contributed equally to this work.

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Ultrasound has a long history as a diagnostic and therapeutic tool. Low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS), whose intensity is below 300 mW/cm2, has been widely used in orthopedic rehabilitation treatment. However, the detailed bioeffects and underlying mechanisms of LIPUS treatment need to be explored. OBJECTIVE: To make a comprehensive view of the field, bibliometric and visualization analysis was used to reveal the global research trends of LIPUS in orthopedics and rehabilitation treatment between 1994 and 2023. METHODS: All literature data on LIPUS were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection database. VOSviewer and CiteSpace were applied for the bibliometric and visualization analysis. RESULTS: A total of 760 publications were included. The distribution of publications generally showed an unstable rising trend. China had the highest number of publications (28.0%), and Chong Qing Medical University was the organization with the highest number of publications (5.8%). Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology had the highest number of publications (8.8%), while BMJ-British Medical Journal had the highest impact factor among the retrieved journals. Ling Qin from the Chinese University of Hong Kong was the most active researcher. Our overlay visualization map showed that the keywords such as pain, knee osteoarthritis, apoptosis, chondrocytes, cartilage, and autophagy, which link to osteoarthritis, have becoming the new research trends and hotspots. CONCLUSION: LIPUS is a popular and increasingly important area of orthopedic rehabilitation, and collaboration of authors from different countries should be further strengthened. Predictably, clinical application of LIPUS on chronic inflammation-related diseases and regenerative medicine, and in-depth biological mechanisms are the orientations of LIPUS in orthopedic rehabilitation treatment.

Keywords: LIPUS, bone, fracture, cartilage, rehabilitation research

DOI: 10.3233/BMR-230273

Journal: Journal of Back and Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation, vol. 37, no. 5, pp. 1189-1203, 2024