A correspondence on bibliometric analysis of vaccination against atherosclerosis

Dear Editor,

Our team recently examined the study by Jia et al., titled “A bibliometric analysis of vaccination against atherosclerosis.”¹ This study thoroughly explores the changing research trends surrounding vaccination strategies for atherosclerosis (AS), acting as a significant reference for ongoing research into the mechanisms and therapeutic approaches for AS. While the study’s findings are highly informative, we propose enhancing the methods used for information retrieval to increase the scope and accuracy of future research efforts. Furthermore, the inclusion of the H-index, which serves as a vital indicator of a researcher’s academic influence and productivity, would be beneficial.² Additionally, forecasting publication trends could provide valuable insights, enabling the research community to anticipate future shifts, optimize resource distribution, and align with overarching societal and scientific goals.

An essential component of bibliometric research involves crafting precise search terms and strategies. Jia et al. employed a Topic Search (TS) that incorporated terms from “Title (TI),” “Abstract (AB),” “Author Keywords (AK),” and “Keywords Plus (KP).” However, “KP” terms are generated algorithmically by WoSCC, which may result in the inclusion of unrelated studies. Our analysis suggests that focusing exclusively on “TI,” “AB,” and “AK” terms leads to more accurate and relevant data collection.³ In our study, we refined these search terms to improve data acquisition accuracy. The updated search strategy is provided in Table S1.

The H-index is a pivotal metric for measuring both the volume and impact of a researcher’s scholarly contributions. It is defined by the number of a researcher’s publications (H) that have each received at least H citations, underscoring the significance of their most impactful work.² As a reliable measure of academic influence, the H-index reflects research that has attracted considerable attention and citations. We determined researchers’ H-indices using the Web of Science online platform (https://webofscience.clarivate.cn/). The H-index is crucial for evaluating academic performance, supporting career development, and ranking institutions, providing a balanced measure of both research productivity and influence.

By employing an updated search methodology, we retrieved 764 papers published between January 1, 1990, and February 8, 2024, with the search executed on August 9, 2024. After removing irrelevant records, our analysis was narrowed down to 651 papers. As shown in Figure 1a, the annual publication trend reveals a significant rise in research on AS vaccination beginning in 2020, marking heightened interest in this area. Furthermore, we project publication numbers to reach 90 in 2024, 109 in 2025, and 131 in 2026, indicating a steady upward trend. Figures 1b–f provide visual insights into the geographical distribution of corresponding authors and the international collaboration networks across countries, institutions, and journals. The United States leads the contribution, followed by China and the United Kingdom (Figure 1c).

Figure 1.

A bibliometric analysis of vaccination against atherosclerosis is presented. (a) The trends in annual publications over the past 30 years are depicted, with a red dotted trend line fitted using a fourth-order polynomial model (X-axis shows the year, and Y-axis shows the number of publications annually). (b) A geospatial map presents the distribution of corresponding authors by country. (c–d) VOSviewer visualizations illustrate networks of international collaboration among countries and institutions. (e) The top 10 authors in the field of atherosclerosis vaccination are showcased, with the number of publications and H-index displayed in parentheses (left and right, respectively). (f–g) visualizations show networks of collaboration among journals and manuscript citations, where node size and color represent quantity and category, respectively, and connecting lines indicate the degree of collaboration or co-citation. (h) A keyword density map is displayed, with a color gradient from cool to warm indicating an increase in keyword frequency. (i) A list of the top 20 references with the strongest citation bursts is provided. (j) The top 20 keywords with the strongest citation bursts are identified.

Figure 1d illustrates the collaboration networks between leading institutions, both domestically and internationally. Noteworthy institutions include Lund University, Karolinska Institute, and the University of California, San Diego. Jan Nilsson emerges as the most prolific author with 26 publications and an H-index of 19, underscoring his significant influence in the field (Figure 1e). Although Kuang-Yuh Chyu and Daniel F. J. Ketelhuth have produced fewer publications—7 and 6 respectively – their H-index scores of 7 and 6 reflect a high impact with frequent citations. The journal “Vaccine” ranks highest in publication volume (Figure 1f). Our bibliometric coupling analysis identifies Binder et al.’s work as the most frequently cited⁴ (Figure 1g). This finding supports the idea that AS vaccination can be advanced through exploring molecular mimicry between oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL) epitopes and Streptococcus pneumoniae, as immunization with this bacterium has been shown to induce protective oxLDL-specific IgM antibodies that help prevent atherogenesis. The keyword density map in Figure 1h highlights “atherosclerosis” and “Vaccine” as the most prominent terms, representing critical elements of the immune system such as inflammation, autoimmunity, and regulatory T cells, alongside key disease mechanisms like cholesterol metabolism and myocardial infarction. These keywords are crucial for identifying therapeutic targets and strategies related to AS vaccination. Additionally, Figure 1i outlines the top 20 references with notable citation bursts, offering a glimpse into the key studies that have shaped this field. Figure 1j illustrates the top 20 keywords with significant citation bursts, with a 2023 focus on safety, risk, outcome, and heart failure, stressing the importance of thoroughly evaluating the benefits and risks of AS vaccination, particularly in its effectiveness at preventing severe outcomes like heart failure.

In comparison to Jia et al., our study encompasses a more extensive body of literature on AS vaccination, analyzing 651 papers as opposed to their 462. This broader coverage indicates that Jia et al. may have missed relevant studies, resulting in an incomplete representation of the research landscape. By utilizing a larger dataset, our analysis offers a more robust and accurate examination of various bibliometric indicators, including publication and citation metrics, as well as the contributions of countries, institutions, authors, journals, keywords, and references. This highlights the critical need for a carefully designed search strategy and the importance of integrating expert input to refine search terms tailored to the specific research area, thereby improving precision. Our study serves as a comprehensive resource and provides targeted guidance for scholars focused on AS vaccination. Furthermore, by incorporating the H-index, we emphasize the academic influence of researchers, further enhancing the overall significance of our findings.

In conclusion, while we acknowledge the foundational contributions of Jia et al.¹ our methodological improvements effectively address the limitations of their study and pave the way for more thorough and insightful bibliometric research. We suggest that future researchers adopt and refine these advanced strategies to elevate the quality and impact of their work across diverse scientific domains.

Biographies

Jie Tian a surgical resident at West China Hospital of Sichuan University, holds a doctoral degree.

Yu Li Department Director/Chief Physician/Doctor of Medicine. Currently serves as a national committee member of the Fourth Hypertension Professional Committee of the Chinese Medical Doctor Association, a standing committee member of the Hypertension Professional Committee of the Shaanxi Health Medical Association, a member of the Xi’an Medical Technology Identification Expert Database, a standing committee member of the Chest Pain Professional Committee of the Shaanxi Medical Promotion Association, and a standing committee member of the Xi’an Geriatrics Society. With over 20 years of experience in clinical practice, teaching, and research in cardiology, Yu Li has undergone extensive clinical training at the Department of Cardiology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University School of Medicine during her master’s and doctoral studies. In 2009, she furthered her training at the Heart Center of Bergmannsheil Hospital, Ruhr University in Germany. With more than two decades of clinical practice, she has accumulated rich experience, particularly in diagnosing and treating complex and critical cardiovascular diseases, earning the trust of her patients. She specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of hypertension and its complications, refractory hypertension, secondary hypertension, gestational hypertension, metabolic syndrome, sleep apnea syndrome, coronary heart disease, heart failure, and arrhythmias.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Authors’ contribution

Heng Bai, Chun-Bing Yang, Si-Yang Liu, Jie Tian and Yu Li organized and designed the manuscript. Heng Bai, Chun-Bing Yang, Si-Yang Liu, Jie Tian and Yu Li organized and edited the retrieval formula. Heng Bai, Chun-Bing Yang, Si-Yang Liu, Jie Tian and Yu Li created the Figure and Tables. All authors wrote the manuscripts and reviewed the final version.

Data availability statement

The datasets used during the present study are available from the corresponding authors upon reasonable request.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed on the publisher’s website at https://doi.org/10.1080/21645515.2024.2400753