The Global State of Clinical Research and Trends in Periprosthetic Joint Infection: A Bibliometric Analysis

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of the present study was to estimate the trends and state of research of periprosthetic joint infection (PJI).

Methods: Publications on PJI published between 1998 and 2018 were searched from the Web of Science database and analyzed using bibliometrics. The Altmetric score and Research Interest score were combined to provide a weighted count. The scope of the Altmetric score includes >16 weighted composite scores from websites such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, whereas the Research Interest score is calculated from information derived from ResearchGate.

Results: A total of 3245 documents were published. The largest contribution was made by the United States (US), with the most contributive institution the Rothman Institute. The most relative articles were published by the Journal of Arthroplasty, whereas the highest citation frequency journal was Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research. There was a positive correlation between citation counts and Research Interest scores, while the Altmetric Attention score showed a negative value for highly cited articles.

Conclusions: Based on the current trends of globalization, there is a rising trend in publications on PJI, with the largest annual contributions made by the US. The most influential contributors are researchers from the US and Europe. Twitter is used as a platform to communicate knowledge by most PJI researchers. More recent research will focus on the diagnosis and risk factors of PJI.