Exploring the Frontiers of Health Tourism: A Bibliometric Analysis of Research Themes and Trends

Health tourism, encompassing both wellness and medical tourism, serves individuals seeking preventive care, relaxation, and medical treatments in diverse global destinations. This bibliometric study leverages Scopus for bibliographic data to analyze the scientific production in health tourism. The analysis, conducted using Biblioshiny and CiteSpace, focuses on annual scientific production, identifies the most productive authors, and highlights the most relevant sources. Additionally, the study examines countries' scientific outputs and provides a historiographic overview of the field. Trend topics and thematic maps visualize the evolution of research themes, while keywords with the strongest citation bursts are identified. Co-citation analysis reveals influential works and collaborations, and a timeline view of country collaborations illustrates the global research network. The study concludes that while health tourism research has significantly expanded, there is a need for longitudinal studies on long-term outcomes and patient satisfaction. Furthermore, the integration of wellness and medical services, as well as the exploration of ethical and legal frameworks, remain underdeveloped. Practical implications suggest that policymakers should focus on developing uniform regulations and resilient practices to enhance the sustainability and attractiveness of health tourism. These findings provide a comprehensive overview of the current state and future directions of health tourism research, highlighting critical areas for further investigation.