Scientometric mapping of the trends, impact, and thematic evolution of scientific production on ehrlichiosis in veterinary medicine

Abstract

Background and aim: This study focuses on the scientific output of ehrlichiosis, a tick-borne disease that affects a variety of animal species, including dogs, cats, and livestock. Therefore, this study aimed to perform a scientometric mapping of the trends, impact, and thematic evolution of scientific production on ehrlichiosis in veterinary medicine. Materials and methods: The study design was descriptive and observational, with a quantitative scientometric approach. This study was based on Scopus data collection and analysis from 2018 to 2023. A literature search was conducted on February 12, 2024, and a total of 200 documents were found, of which 177 were articles, 15 book chapters, and eight reviews. A specific search formula was used to obtain documents. The documents were analyzed using SciVal and Bibliometrix in R Studio, focusing on four key metrics: Scholarly Output, View Count, Field-Weighted Citation Impact, and Citation Count. Results: This bibliometric study covered the period from 2018 to 2023 and analyzed 200 papers from 84 different sources. The average number of citations was 3595 and the mean age was 3.17 years. A total of 1874 keywords and 1085 authors were identified, with an average of 6.25 co-authors per paper. International co-authorship was present in 23% of the papers. The papers were distributed as articles (177), book chapters (15), and reviews (8). Conclusion: The combination of these metrics enabled a more complete and accurate assessment of research performance. A total of 1874 keywords and 1085 authors were identified. The thematic evolution from "canine ehrlichiosis" and "Ehrlichia canis" to "dog" and "canine" was observed. Bradford's and Lotka's laws were confirmed, with some sources and authors generating most publications.