Trends, Collaborative Networks, and Impact of Infrared Thermography and Thermal Therapies in Dentistry: A Bibliometric Study

Aim: To analyze the scientific literature on infrared thermography and thermal therapies in dentistry published between January 2019 and August 2024 and to identify trends, collaborations, and the impact of research in this field. Materials and methods: A descriptive, bibliometric study was conducted. The search was performed in Scopus using different MeSH terms, thesauri and other Emtree terms. Data were subsequently exported to SciVal and Bibliometrix for comprehensive analysis. The study evaluated publication trends, institutional and international collaborations, co-authorship networks, keywords, and citation patterns. Key metrics assessed included scholarly output, views per publication, citations per publication, CiteScore 2023, SNIP 2023, collaboration maps by country, Lotka’s Law, Bradford’s Law, and the corresponding author’s country. Results: The bibliometric analysis identified 41 documents from 23 sources, exhibiting a negative annual growth rate of –4.3%. The average age of the papers was 2.4 years, with each paper receiving an average of 5.2 citations. A total of 153 specific keywords were identified, and 206 authors contributed to the publications, with no single-authored papers. Besides, Universidade Estadual da Paraíba in Brazil led with 4 publications and an average of 7 citations per publication. The journal of thermal analysis and calorimetry stood out with 12 publications with a cite score of 8.5 and 5.3 citations per publication. Conclusions: Brazil, China, and Indonesia have distinguished themselves through their substantial academic output and notable impact, as evidenced by the high number of citations per publication. Clinical significance: This bibliometric analysis underscores the most impactful and collaborative research areas on infrared thermography and thermal therapies in dentistry. Beyond collaborative research, the study highlights the diverse techniques employed, the advancements in these techniques, and the geographical regions contributing significantly to this field. The findings provide valuable insights that can guide future research directions, enhance clinical practices, and foster international collaborations in infrared thermography and thermal therapies in dentistry.