From past to future: a comprehensive scientometric perspective of influential studies on pterygium

Pterygium is a relatively common ocular surface disease. Although treatment methods have been studied for a long time, pathogenesis remains unclear. We aimed to explore the research activity and future trends of influential studies from a scientometric perspective.

We performed the search in Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) for accessible articles on pterygium from 1945 to 2024. The top 100 cited publications were identified, and the following characteristics for each article were analyzed: total citations, published year, authorship, journal, impact factor (IF), impact index (II), country, institution, study design, and evidence level. VOSviewer was utilized to present visualization network analysis.

A total of 2,633 studies on pterygium from 1945 to 2024 were retrieved from the WoSCC. The top 100 cited publications ranged from 536 to 69 citations, with the publication period spanning between 1960 and 2020. The leading country was the USA, followed by Australia and Singapore. Retrospective study was the most common study design while articles with evidence level III and IV were the most common. Recurrent pterygium, surgery and excision were vital keywords in co-occurrence network for current research status. While fibrin glue, mitomycin-c and amniotic membrane transplantation are likely to become the potential hotspots in the future.

The present study identified the 100 most cited articles on pterygium comprehensively. Fibrin glue, mitomycin-c, and amniotic membrane transplantation might become future focus. However, more studies with strong evidence level and enhanced global collaboration are still required for pterygium research.