Adaptation and altitude sickness: A 40-year bibliometric analysis and collaborative networks

Area of Science:

• Altitude medicine and physiology
• Bibliometrics and scientific production analysis
• Environmental health and adaptation

Background:

• Altitude-related illnesses pose significant health challenges globally.
• Understanding human adaptation to high-altitude environments is crucial for public health.
• Scientific inquiry into altitude diseases has evolved significantly over decades.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the scientific output and collaboration patterns in altitude adaptation and disease research from 1980-2020.
• To identify key research trends, productive countries, and leading institutions in the field.
• To map the co-occurrence of keywords to understand research priorities.

Main Methods:

• Bibliometric analysis of publications indexed in Scopus.
• Quantitative assessment of annual publications, document types, and journal distribution.
• Network visualization using VOSviewer to map country productivity, collaboration, and keyword co-occurrence.

Main Results:

• A consistent annual growth of 4.6% in publications was observed (R²: 0.9847).
• Original articles dominated the output, with "Altitude Medicine and Biology" as a key journal.
• China and Peru led in productivity among high-altitude nations, while the US was central to collaboration networks.

Conclusions:

• Scientific production on altitude adaptation and diseases shows a sustained upward trend.
• Collaborative networks involving high-altitude countries and nations like the US and UK are prominent.
• Research priorities focus on adaptation mechanisms (anoxia, respiratory function) and altitude-related pathologies such as acute mountain sickness and pulmonary edema.