Visualization and emerging topics in the global scientific production on neonatal abstinence syndrome: a bibliometric approach

Neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) is a condition that affects newborns exposed to opioids or addictive substances during gestation.The prevalence of this condition has increased significantly in recent decades, particularly in high-income countries. This study aimed to identify the bibliometric characteristics and visualize emerging topics in the global scientific production on NAS. A bibliometric analysis was conducted using documents retrieved from the SCOPUS database between 1994 and 2023.The search strategy incorporated terms from Medical Subject Headings (MeSH), Emtree, and free-text keywords. Annual growth, collaboration networks, the most frequent keywords, and the most cited articles were analyzed. A total of 1,455 documents were retrieved, with an annual growth rate of 9.57% and a coefficient of determination of 0.89. Open-access publications accounted for 37.59% of the studies. The United States led the scientific production with 52.4% of the documents, followed by Canada (4.9%) and Australia (3.9%). The most frequent keywords after 2020 were “sleep,”“neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome,” and “neurodevelopment.” Scientific production on NAS has increased substantially over the past decades, with a predominance of studies conducted in the United States and Canada. Future research should focus on the diagnosis, treatment, and burden of incidence and prevalence in low-and middle-income countries.