Research progress and hotspots on macrophages in osteoarthritis: A bibliometric analysis from 2009 to 2022

BACKGROUND: Macrophages in the synovium, as immune cells, can be polarized into different phenotypes to play an anti-inflammatory role in the treatment of osteoarthritis. In this study, bibliometric methods were used to search the relevant literature to find valuable research directions for researchers and provide new targets for osteoarthritis prevention and early treatment. METHODS: Studies about the application of macrophages in the treatment of osteoarthritis were searched through the Web of Science core database from 2009 to 2022. Microsoft Excel 2019, VOSviewer, CiteSpace, R software, and 2 online websites were used to analyze the research status and predict the future development of the trend in research on macrophages in osteoarthritis. RESULTS: The number of publications identified with the search strategy was 1304. China and the United States ranked first in the number of publications. Shanghai Jiao Tong University ranked first in the world with 37 papers. Osteoarthritis and Cartilage was the journal with the most publications, and “exosomes,” “stem cells,” “macrophage polarization,” “regeneration,” and “innate immunity” may remain the research hotspots and frontiers in the future. CONCLUSION: The findings from the global trend analysis indicate that research on macrophages in the treatment of osteoarthritis is gradually deepening, and the number of studies is increasing. Exosomes may become a research trend and hotspot in the future.