Trends in Premature Ejaculation Research From 2004 to 2023: A Bibliometric Analysis

Background: Premature ejaculation (PE) is a largely prevalent sexual complaint that can lead to distress in couple relationships and can significantly reduce patients’ quality of life. Despite the considerable progress in PE research in the last decades, there is still a lack of visual and summarized literature for comprehensive understanding.

Objective: This study aims to identify collaboration patterns among different authors, countries, and institutions in PE research and explore the hotspots and prospects in the field.

Methods: On January 22, 2024, we conducted a search of all relevant literature in the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database from January 1, 2004, to December 31, 2023, and supplemented the search with PubMed database for author publication volumes. Visual analyses of authors and keywords were performed using the bibliometrix R package, CiteSpace, and VOSviewer software.

Results: In the field of PE, 5457 authors contributed to 1760 articles published across 442 journals. The number of publications gradually increased from 2004 to 2023, with a relatively stable trend in the past 5 years. The Journal of Sexual Medicine (340 papers) had the highest number of publications, and positive collaboration was observed among countries and institutions. Several core author groups emerged, including Jannini EA (60 WoSCC/67 PubMed papers), Waldinger MD (59 WoSCC/90 PubMed papers), and Rowland DL (51 WoSCC/68 PubMed papers), contributing significantly to the literature. The United States was the major contributor, with 384 papers. Keyword cluster analysis revealed that research focuses on PE diagnosis, pharmaceutical treatment (e.g., selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors [SSRIs] and antidepressants), etiology (e.g., serotonin [5-HT], NOS, and vas deferens), and relationships with prostate, thyroid, anxiety, depression, and other risk factors.

Conclusion: Based on the knowledge map, this study provides an intuitive representation of the recent 20 years of PE research, offering a preliminary analysis of major research teams and exploring research hotspots, frontiers, and trends. This analysis aims to guide researchers and serve as a reference for future research on PE.