Research trends in pre-eclampsia and exosomes from 2009 to 2023: a bibliometric analysis.

BACKGROUND

With the rapid development of biomedicine in recent years, research on pre-eclampsia and exosomes has received increasing attention; however, no bibliometric analysis of this field has been published.

OBJECTIVE

To conduct an objective review of the past 15 years of global literature on pre-eclampsia and exosomes, with the aims of evaluating the current state of research, identifying trends, and pinpointing the primary areas of focus within this domain.

METHODS

Utilizing the Web of Science core collection as the primary source of data, we retrieved articles related to pre-eclampsia and exosomes published from January 1, 2009, to December 31, 2023. The selected articles were analyzed using the bibliometric tools CiteSpace, VOSviewer, and Bibliometrix to map and assess trends in research output across different dimensions, including geographic distribution, contributing institution, authorship, keywords, and co-citation patterns.

RESULTS AND

CONCLUSIONS

A total of 1179 research papers were included in the analysis. The number of research publications on pre-eclampsia and exocytosis in China and abroad showed a trend of increasing year by year, with China and the USA publishing the most papers, at 621 and 167, respectively. Nanjing Medical University in China was the top-ranked institution, with 55 publications. Professor Zhang Yi (Nanjing Medical University) had the largest number of publications of any author. While the journal Placenta had the highest output, a paper published in American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology by first author Professor Zhu Xiao-Ming (Fourth Military Medical University, China) was the most cited reference. Pre-eclampsia, microRNA, gene expression, extracellular vesicles, exosomes, oxidative stress, and biomarkers were the most relevant keywords. Analysis of the most popular topics revealed that biomarkers has become a new research hotspot. Our findings indicated that research on pre-eclampsia and exosomes has shown a gradual upward trend over the last 15 years, with the research direction gradually shifting from exploring the expression of pre-eclampsia-associated exosomal microRNAs to searching for biomarkers that aid in recognizing and diagnosing pre-eclampsia. Exosomal microRNA-based approaches represent a promising therapeutic strategy for pre-eclampsia.