Quality of life after third molar surgery: a bibliometric analysis of randomized clinical trials.

Background: This study aimed to conduct a bibliometric analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluated quality of life following third molar surgery.

Material and methods: A bibliometric analysis was performed in accordance with the BIBLIO checklist across 11 databases: Web of Science, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, The Cochrane Library, Livivo, LILACS, Scopus, Epistemonikos, and Google Scholar. RCTs that assessed quality of life after third molar surgery were included. Searches were conducted on September 20, 2024, and updated on May 5, 2025.

Results: The initial search retrieved 4,217 records, of which 46 articles were included. The average annual number of publications between 2008 and 2024 was 2.7. A total of 192 authors contributed to the included studies, with the University of Mosul being the most productive institution. India and Iraq were the most prolific countries, each contributing five publications. Most articles were published in journals specializing in oral and maxillofacial surgery. The terms extracted from the titles co-occurrence analysis revealed distinct thematic clusters.

Conclusions: Scientific output on quality of life following third molar surgery has shown consistent growth. Future RCTs are encouraged to incorporate qualitative approaches to gain a broader understanding of the clinical and social impacts of surgical interventions.