The status of publications on acupuncture in the treatment of primary dysmenorrhoea indexed in PubMed (2007-2016): A bibliometric analysis

© 2017 Elsevier España, S.L.U. Objective: To identify the status of publications on acupuncture in the treatment of primary dysmenorrhoea indexed in PubMed (2007-2016). Material and methods: Records were retrieved using PubMed (2007-2016), and the evaluation of the visibility of the publications made using SCImago Journal Rank. The bibliometric indicators applied were: temporal production, authorship, geographical coverage, collaboration, Bradford's Dispersion Law and formulation of Egghe, visibility, and language coverage. Results: A total of 78 items were retrieved in 30 international Journals. The main production country was China (69.23%), highlighting the most prolific author Jiang Zhu of the Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, which in turn was the leading institution in terms of volume of publications. The index was 77.77%. Almost all works (97.43%) were in collaboration between authors, of which 28.20% were between national institutions, and 2.56% international. The core journals were: Zhongguo Zhen Jiu [Chinese Acupuncture & Moxibustion], Evidence Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, and Zhen ci yan jiu [Acupuncture research]. Almost all (98.80%) of publications were present in the SCImago Journal Rank, where 50% of the production is presented in the first quartile. The language coverage of publications focuses on two languages, English (69.23%) and Chinese (30.77%). Conclusions: A comprehensive strategy needs to be implemented in order to continue advancing in this field, with a greater involvement of researchers both at national and international level.