Global Trends and Hotspots of Minimally Invasive Surgery in Lumbar Spinal Stenosis: A Bibliometric Analysis

Dacheng Sang; Jinyang Guo; Hanlu Meng; Luofei Zhang; Hongpeng Sang

doi:10.2147/JPR.S440723

Global Trends and Hotspots of Minimally Invasive Surgery in Lumbar Spinal Stenosis: A Bibliometric Analysis

J Pain Res. 2024 Jan 5:17:117-132. doi: 10.2147/JPR.S440723. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Dacheng Sang^#¹, Jinyang Guo^#², Hanlu Meng², Luofei Zhang³, Hongpeng Sang⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical College (Yijishan Hospital of Wannan Medical College), Wannan Medical College, Wuhu, Anhui, 241001, People's Republic of China.
² Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Chifeng Clinical Medical College of Inner Mongolia Minzu University, Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, 024000, People's Republic of China.
³ Department of Clinical Pharmacology, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100000, People's Republic of China.
⁴ Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Chifeng University, Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, 024000, People's Republic of China.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Objective: The popularity of minimally invasive surgery for lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) has been steadily increasing worldwide. This study aims to conduct a comprehensive bibliometric analysis to identify global trends and hotspots in the research related to this surgical approach.

Methods: Select articles related to the field that were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) between January 1, 1993 and December 31, 2022. Visualization of networks and in-depth bibliometric analyses, including the number of publications, countries/regions, institutions, journals, authors, keywords, and references, were conducted using VOSviewer and CiteSpace software.

Results: A total of 1197 papers were identified over a three-decade period, with the highest production year being 2022, which saw 171 papers published. The most prolific countries/regions were the United States (279) and Harvard Medical School (59). Among journals, Spine (3289 citations) was the most cited, while World Neurosurgery (98 publications) had the highest number of publications. Lewandrowski, Kai-Uwe (29 publications) wrote the most articles, and Ahn, Y (239 citations) ranked first among cited authors. The most frequently used keyword was "discectomy", but recent years have shown a strong emergence of keywords such as "microendoscopic decompressive laminotomy", "foraminotomy" and "classification".

Conclusion: The United States and China have emerged as leaders in the field of minimally invasive surgery for LSS. Endoscopic spinal surgery is recognized as a critical approach, with ongoing research focused on indications, potential complications, minimally invasive anatomical approaches, and outcomes. Furthermore, there is a strong emphasis on optimizing the surgical process, which has become a trending and hot spot in current research. The improvement of surgical techniques is at the forefront of advancements in this field.

Keywords: bibliometric; endoscopes; hotspot; lumbar spinal stenosis; minimally invasive surgery.

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the special foundation for introducing talents of the First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical College (Yijishan Hospital), NO. YR20230137.