Research hotspots and trends related to pain in gouty arthritis from 2014 to 2024: A bibliometric analysis.

Abstract

Background: Gouty arthritis is a metabolic condition caused by disordered purine metabolism and elevated uric acid levels. This study adopts a bibliometric approach to analyze current research on pain in gouty arthritis and forecast future research trends.

Methods: Retrieve relevant research on gouty arthritis pain in the Web of Science core collection database, screen literature, and use visualization software such as CiteSpace, Vosviewers, and R package "Bibliometrix" for analysis.

Results: The total number of documents included was 1133, with 909 articles and 224 reviews. Between 2014 and 2024, there was an overall upward trend in the number of publications about pain in gouty arthritis, with the United States of America and China ranking first and second, respectively, in terms of publication volume. The UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA BIRMINGHAM had the most publications, and Professor DALBETH N played a key role in this field. According to the keyword analysis, disease management and treatment, particularly methods for enhancing patients' quality of life and reducing symptoms, are research hotspots. For a deeper understanding, attention is also being paid to the epidemiology and pathological mechanisms of the disease. Emerging keywords such as "gut microbiota" and "urate-lowering therapies" indicate growing interest in the interrelationship between gut microbiota and gout, and the development of new treatment methods.

Conclusion: This bibliometric study reveals that research on gouty arthritis pain is actively developing. Current hot topics reflect investigations into the deeper pathological mechanisms of gouty arthritis and the development of new treatment methods, including urate-lowering therapies. There is also increasing attention on the role of gut microbiota in the disease. Despite limitations such as the preliminary nature of research methods and insufficient interdisciplinary collaboration, future research directions aim to improve the rigor of research design, strengthen international cooperation, promote unified treatment guidelines, and optimize the diagnosis and treatment of gouty arthritis with new technologies like artificial intelligence, precision medicine, and nanomedicine. This will drive the field towards a deeper scientific understanding, more effective treatment methods, and more comprehensive disease management, ultimately improving patients' prognosis and quality of life.