Tropical Medicine in China: Bibliometric Analysis Based on Web of Science (2010–2019)

PURPOSE: The current study quantitatively assessed research trends in tropical medicine in China via a bibliometric method, which used the Web of Science database to analyse the research-based literature related to tropical medicine published from 2010 to 2019. METHODS: Articles were analysed according to the output and research performance of institutes and countries that collaborated with China. Distribution of keywords was applied to evaluate research trends. RESULTS: Our findings showed that 3372 articles in the field of tropical medicine have been indexed under the Web of Science database during the past 10 years, indicating that studies pertaining to tropical medicine have been growing from 2010 to 2019. The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (China CDC) system, which published 549 articles on tropical medicine, may be considered as the flagship of tropical medicine in China. The United States ranked first in internationally collaborative articles with China. Furthermore, Parasite & Vectors, which published 707 papers, emerged as the top journal according to the number of publications. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the key institutes and topics pertaining to tropical medicine research in China. Although there has been rapid progress in research on tropical medicine in China, some gaps still remain.