Unveiling research landscapes in erectile dysfunction: a bibliometric analysis comparing basic scientific research and clinical studies.

Introduction: Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a highly prevalent male sexual disorders, affecting million of men worldwide. Given the volume of literature in ED, bibliometric analyses will provide an important resource to highlight landmark articles.

Objectives: To evaluate the publication trends and impacts between basic scientific research and clinical studies through bibliometric analysis of ED literature between 1998 and 2023.

Methods: We searched for articles in the Web of Science database from 1 January 1998 to 31 December 2023 using MeSH terms specific to ED. Relevant articles were divided into basic scientific research and clinical studies. A bibliometric analysis was performed by using "Citespace" and "VOSviewer" software.

Results: A total of 6450 studies were identified, with 4808 in clinical studies and 1642 basic scientific research. The USA has the highest publication rate with 1851 articles, followed by China (853) and Italy (635). The University of California, San Francisco ranked first in basic scientific research with 68 research papers, while the University of Florence led the clinical research with 133 papers. The Journal of Sexual Medicine and the Journal of Urology were found to have the highest academic influence. Clinical research papers receive more citations than basic scientific ones. Notably, vardenafil emerged as the most frequently used keyword in ED research over the past decade, ranking first in both basic scientific and clinical studies.

Conclusion: Bibliometric analyses can provide an in-depth analysis in distinguishing ED literature. There is a need to foster multi-center international collaborations and new emphasis on novel technology and recent scientific advances.