Mapping the evolution of pediatric craniopharyngioma research: a bibliometric analysis

To use validated bibliometric methods to map the evolution of CP treatment, with a particular focus on how definitions of treatment success, surgical techniques, and pathological subtypes have shifted over time.

A Web of Science (WoS) query was designed to capture all available articles related to pediatric CPs. Articles not published in English were excluded from the cohort. The Bibliometrix R-tool, VOSviewer, and various Python packages were employed to perform bibliometric analyses.

The WoS query identified 2608 articles, with 2348 articles meeting inclusion criteria. Of these, 90% were published in the last 27 years. Reflecting the multidisciplinary collaborative management of CPs, neurosurgery, oncology, and endocrinology-focused journals produced the most publications in the corpus. Authorship analysis revealed substantial international and interinstitutional collaboration. Keyword analysis and landmark article identification illuminated eras in the field's development. Notably, a transition to measuring treatment success by quality of life, instead of gross total resection, occurred during the 1990s. The 2000s were highlighted by applying the newfound transsphenoidal approach to pediatric CPs. Finally, the 2010s made use of high-fidelity sequencing to begin uncovering the genetic profiles that drive these tumors.

Interinstitutional and interdisciplinary collaboration has allowed physicians to provide pediatric patients with CPs care for their patients using the best knowledge and technology available. Genetics offers a new frontier for the treatment of pediatric CPs increases, and continued collaboration will be necessary to ensure that the standard of care evolves appropriately.