Pain and Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation: A Bibliometric Analysis

CONTEXT: Pain management is a constant struggle. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a neuromodulation technique with proved efficacy in chronic pain. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study is to provide a bibliometric perspective regarding articles on pain and tDCS. Having a visualized and systematically overview of publication trends, new research ideas could arise for clinicians. METHODS: Articles on pain and tDCS were retrieved from Web of Science database. Using the R software version 4.1.2 and the “biblioshiny” R package, a quantitative and statistical analysis was performed. Time trend, number of publications, journals and authors, author country and institution, as well as citations and references were visualized. RESULTS: A total of 554 publication fulfilled the criteria and were analyzed. The scientific production has been increasing over time with an annual growth of 17.1%. Brain Stimulation Journal and Journal of Pain are the leading journals regarding articles and citations. Fregni F. (83 articles) is the most prolific researcher with important authorship in the field. USA is the country with most authors involved in the topic (558 authors), whereas the leading institution is represented by Universidade Federal Rio Grande Do Sul (84 articles). Lefaucheur JP. article from 2017 has the maximum citations, while keywords in trend in the last three years are osteoarthritis and low back pain. CONCLUSION: This is the first bibliometric study that reflects the trends of tDCS in the field of pain. Journals as well as authors are limited and clustered. However the number of articles as well as number of citations are constantly increasing, supporting the idea that this is an emerging topic. The information obtained could be an important practical basis for future pain management research.