Identifying emerging trends in rheumatoid arthritis research: A scientometric analysis

Abstract Background Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic autoimmune disease, characterized as chronic and progressive with acute inflammatory attacks. RA is highly prevalent across all societies and over the past two decades there has been substantial effort to improve diagnostics and therapeutics.Methods We searched for pertinent studies using CiteSpace and created maps to understand the intellectual structure of RA research. Pertinent studies over the past two decades were retrieved from Web of Science. Scientometric analysis in this study includes time distribution, cluster analysis, time-zones and time-lines of keywords, as well as burst detection.Results Our analysis has revealed a steady upward trend in publications from 2010 until 2018 which perhaps reflects growing global concern and investment. While the etiology of RA appears unknown, there is a plethora of studies into pathological mechanisms, diagnostics and drug development through one of the phases of basic and clinical research. RA pathogenesis has been shown to involve immune cells, including T cells, B cells, macrophages and synoviocytes which have a key role in invasive synovium and joint inflammation. X-rays and blood testing can support differential diagnostics, and there are a number of treatments available which are selected depending upon RA staging.Conclusions TNF-α, apoptosis, pathogenesis, and NF-κB are the most frequently used terms across this specialism in 2020. These terms represent the new theoretical understanding and necessitates further research because they may guide patient selection and more individualised RA care.