A bibliometric analysis of forensic entomology trends and perspectives worldwide over the last two decades (1998-2017)

Abstract

Through bibliometric analysis, this study aimed to reveal worldwide research productivity and trends in forensic entomology over the last two decades (1998-2017). As "forensic entomology" is yet to be established as a Medical Subject Headings term, we used "forensic entomology" and "legal entomology" as topics in Web of Science Core Collection, Medline, and PubMed searches. Two independent investigators retrieved and evaluated 3165 articles. After determining the cutoff for publication year and excluding repeated or irrelevant articles, 1087 articles remained for analysis. In terms of papers published, the United States was the most productive among the 136 countries (and disputed regions) that contributed to forensic entomological research. Among the 179 journals that published all articles, two were considered core journals based on Bradford's Law (i.e., the two journals published the majority of relevant articles). Most studies focused on the order Diptera and family Calliphoridae. The most common topics were estimation of postmortem interval and species identification.

Keywords: Bibliometrics; Forensic entomology; Forensic science; Medline; PubMed; Web of Science Core Collection.