An Observational Study of Programmed Cell Death In Hypertrophic Scars and Keloids Based on Bibliometric Analysis

Hypertrophic scars (HS) and keloids are fibroproliferative disorders caused by abnormal wound healing. Their features include excessive fibroblast proliferation, extracellular matrix deposition, and persistent inflammation. Programmed cell death (PCD) is known to be involved in these conditions, but the current state of PCD pathways studied in HS and keloids has not yet been reviewed. This study used bibliometric analysis to describe the current state of PCD research in HS and keloids, to identify the hotspots and trends. The authors retrieved publications on PCD in HS and keloids from the Web of Science Core Collection. For the bibliometric analysis, the authors used VOSviewer (version 1.6.21). A total of 312 articles were included in this study. In the coauthorship analysis of countries, China, the United States, and Germany formed a core triangle in the field. In the coauthorship analysis of organizations, Shanghai Jiao Tong University showed the highest strength. The most productive institution, journal, and author were Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Wound Repair and Regeneration, and Long Xiao, respectively. In the cocited analysis, the foundational authors were Desmoulière A, Ladin Daniel A, and Sayah DN; the foundational journals were the Journal of Investigative Dermatology and Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. The keyword co-occurrence map revealed that the most active research topics were "apoptosis," "ferroptosis," "autophagy," and "noncoding RNAs," and the overlay map indicated that the most recent hotspots were "ferroptosis" and "autophagy." Four principal research hotspots emerged from the analysis: apoptosis, ferroptosis, autophagy, and noncoding RNAs. Ferroptosis and autophagy may emerge as future research trends. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III.