Global research trends and hotspots in robotic-assisted prostate biopsy: a bibliometric analysis from 2008 to 2026

Robotic-assisted prostate biopsy is now a key approach for early, accurate prostate cancer detection. The swift expansion and diversification of studies in this area make it difficult for researchers to discern unexplored topics and future avenues. Bibliometric analysis provides a systematic, quantitative method to map the literature, active research fronts, and evolving trends within a specific domain. We retrieved robotic-assisted prostate biopsy literature spanning 2008 to 2026 from the Web of Science Core Collection. CiteSpace 6.4.2 and VOSviewer 1.6.20 were subsequently employed to conduct author co-occurrence, document co-citation, and keyword co-occurrence analyses, and citation burst detection was utilized to pinpoint research hotspots and frontier directions. A total of 145 articles published by 706 researchers from 203 institutions across 19 countries were included in this study. The annual publication volume showed a wave-like fluctuation, reaching four distinct peaks in 2012, 2018, 2021, and 2025. The United States ranked first in both publication volume (71 articles, 37.8%) and citation frequency (2,843 citations), followed by Canada, China, and the Netherlands. Johns Hopkins University and Queens University were the most prolific research institutions. Tokuda, Junichi, Hata, Nobuhiko, and Fichtinger, Gabor stood out as scholars with substantial academic impact in the area. The main publishing venues for this research field were journals including IEEE-ASME Transactions on Mechatronics and International Journal of Medical Robotics and Computer Assisted Surgery. Keyword clustering analysis identified five major research themes: prostate cancer, biopsy, prostate biopsy, medical robotics, and magnetic resonance imaging. Burst keyword analysis showed a continuous evolution of research hotspots: early studies centered on the basic diagnosis and conventional treatment of prostate cancer, with biopsy and MRI imaging as the core diagnostic modalities and puncture technique as the main research focus; subsequently, research shifted from robotics as a standalone tool to a deeper exploration of medical robotic systems, while MRI imaging and puncture techniques advanced toward greater precision; more recently, medical robotics has become dominant, forming a research trend characterized by the deep integration of robotic assistance, precise and minimally invasive puncture, and image guidance. This bibliometric study maps nearly 18 years of research on robotic-assisted prostate biopsy, revealing a fluctuating publication trend closely tied to technological breakthroughs. Additionally, the analysis highlights that the United States remains the primary contributor to international scientific production in this domain. Concurrently, the field's research priorities have evolved significantly over time, shifting their emphasis away from early technical feasibility and biopsy accuracy toward mpMRI-guided fusion navigation, artificial intelligence-assisted decision-making, functional outcomes preservation, and evidence-based guideline development. By systematically delineating the intellectual structure, research hotspots, and evolving thematic trends, this analysis provides a macroscopic roadmap for identifying research gaps and orienting future investigations in this interdisciplinary field.