A scientometric, visualization, and content analysis on surgical endodontics from inception to 2023

In persistent periapical lesions, periapical surgery may be considered an alternative treatment option to remove inflammatory and necrotic tissue from the periapical region, seal the apical root end, and promote tissue regeneration. The present scientometric analysis aims to analyze the scientific landscape in the field of surgical endodontics, identify research trends, and classify popular topics. A thorough literature search was conducted in the Web of Science and Scopus databases on 29 September 2023 to retrieve all articles related to surgical endodontics. The articles were analyzed with Biblioshiny software, and the following details were collected: publication titles & years, authors' names and affiliations, journals' metrics, citation counts, author keywords, the field of study, study design, and outcome. A total of 1988 publications concerning surgical endodontics from 1935 until September 2023 were identified and further analyzed. Sixty-two countries contributed to scientific production in this field and the USA was the most productive among them. Von Arx T. and the Journal of Endodontics was the most relevant author and journal, respectively. "Materials" was the most prevalent title term and "apicoectomy" was the most used keyword. The distribution of the scientific literature on surgical endodontics was as follows: 38.3% basic science, 15.8% reviews, 37.2% observational studies, and 8.7% clinical studies. Overall, 31% of the conducted research concerned the materials and 19% the techniques used in clinical practice. This bibliometric analysis describes the research landscape in surgical endodontics and converts the acquired data into useful information regarding the current and future trends of this field.