A Bibliometric Analysis of Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Spinal Cord Injury: Research Landscape and Emerging Trends, 2000-2025.

INTRODUCTION

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a severe central nervous system injury. Mitochondrial dysfunction is a key driver of the secondary injury cascade, disrupting energy metabolism and calcium homeostasis and activating cell death pathways. Although bibliometric approaches have been widely used to map research trends, hotspots, and knowledge structures across biomedical fields, systematic analyses of research at the intersection of SCI and mitochondrial dysfunction remain limited.

METHODS

Relevant publications on mitochondrial dysfunction in SCI published between 2000 and 2025 were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC). After screening according to predefined eligibility criteria, 993 articles and reviews were included. Bibliometrix, VOSviewer, and CiteSpace were used for bibliometric analysis and visualization of publication output, countries and institutions, authors, journals, co-citation networks, and keywords.

RESULTS

Annual publication output increased exponentially (R² = 0.9453), with particularly rapid growth after 2017. China produced the most publications (n = 442), whereas the United States received the most total citations (25,855). The University of Kentucky ranked first in institutional publication output, while several Chinese institutions showed strong recent citation bursts. Patrick G. Sullivan was a prominent early contributor, whereas Xifan Mei exhibited the strongest recent author burst. Keyword analysis identified five major thematic clusters and indicated a temporal shift in research emphasis from apoptosis-related mechanisms toward inflammation, regeneration, and immunometabolism.

DISCUSSION: The number of publications in this field has grown rapidly since 2017, reflecting increasing research attention to mitochondrial dysfunction and mitochondria-targeted therapeutic strategies. Keywords indicate that the research topic has gradually expanded from mechanism research focused on apoptosis to inflammation, regeneration, and immunometabolism. Mitochondria may be an important regulator of the inflammation and regeneration microenvironment after SCI. Given the complexity of the secondary injury cascade, a single-target intervention strategy makes it difficult to achieve optimal recovery of neurological function.

CONCLUSION

This first bibliometric study, focusing on spinal cord injury and mitochondria, demonstrates that the field is advancing rapidly and exhibits distinct translational research orientations. Immunemetabolism has emerged as a novel research frontier, yet relevant clinical trials in this area remain scarce, underscoring the need to accelerate the translation of basic research outcomes into clinical practice.