Bibliometric Analysis of Research Articles on Virtual Reality in the Field of Pain Medicine Published from 1993 to 2022

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to analyze global and regional (China, Japan, and South Korea) research on virtual reality (VR) in the field of pain medicine over the past 30 years. Specifically, we quantify VR-related publications, examine the distribution of research topics on chronic and acute pain, and identify trends and future directions.

Methods

The Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database was used for bibliometric analysis. This study included articles written in English between 1993 and 2022. The search strategy used predefined terms related to VR and pain. Based on the articles’ titles and abstracts, two pain physicians independently reviewed and classified them as acute or chronic pain. Quantitative data on countries, institutions, journals, and research categories were analyzed. VOSviewer software was used for keyword mapping and clustering.

Results

We analyzed 808 VR-related articles on pain medicine. Over the past three decades, the number of publications in this field has increased steadily. The United States of America (n = 259) had the highest number of publications. Moreover, China (n = 42), Japan (n = 18), and South Korea (n = 24) also contributed continuously. Acute and chronic pain research accounted for 44.2% and 37.9% of the articles, respectively. The most common acute pain topic was procedure-related (n = 129, 16.0%), whereas the most common chronic pain topic was neuropathic (n = 104, 12.9%). Keywords clustered around neuroscience, pediatric pain management, and chronic pain management.

Conclusion

Our study revealed academic achievements and growing interest in VR-related research in pain medicine. Researchers worldwide have shown balanced interest in applying VR technology to acute and chronic pain, with specific contributions from China, Japan, and South Korea. Harnessing VR technology is promising for improving pain management and enhancing patients’ quality of life in the field of pain medicine.

Keywords:

• bibliometrics
• virtual reality
• pain management
• China
• Korea
• Japan

Abbreviations

VR, Virtual reality; WoSCC, Web of Science Core Collection; SCIE, Science Citation Index Expanded; SSCI, Social Sciences Citation Index; A&HCI, Arts and Humanities Citation Index; ESCI, Emerging Sources Citation Index; TS, Topic search; TI, Title search; IF, Impact factor.

Disclosure

The authors declare no conflicts of interest in this work.

Additional information

Funding

The authors have no sources of funding to declare for this manuscript.