Rise of Big Data in Spine Surgery Research: A Bibliometric Analysis, 1993-2024

Area of Science:

• Spine surgery research
• Big data analytics
• Bibliometrics

Background:

• Spine surgery research has seen a steady increase in publications since 1900.
• The advent of large databases and registries has transformed research methodologies.
• Large-scale database studies are increasingly prevalent in spine surgery due to its significant implications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To descriptively characterize trends in large-database usage in spine surgery research.
• To analyze changes in publication volume, topic distribution, and geographic output over time.
• To identify key research areas and geographical patterns in spine surgery database studies.

Main Methods:

• A comprehensive search of the Web of Science (WoS) database was conducted using keywords related to big data and spine surgery.
• Original and review articles published between 1993 and 2024 were included in the analysis.
• Data were categorized, quantitatively analyzed, and visualized using VOSviewer for network analysis.

Main Results:

• A more than 10-fold increase in publications utilizing large databases was observed from 2012 to 2024.
• Degenerative conditions were the most frequent research topic, followed by public health and infection.
• The United States dominated research output (62.29%), and citation counts significantly increased.

Conclusions:

• The utilization of large databases in spine surgery research has grown substantially, indicating a shift towards big data approaches.
• While degenerative conditions remain a primary focus, research on spinal infections and public health outcomes is increasing.
• Geographic research output is concentrated in Western countries, particularly the United States, highlighting a need for broader global participation.