Abstract
BackgroundAntidepressant treatment is one of the most effective ways of relieving or curing depressive symptoms in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). Although many studies have explored the efficacy, tolerability, adverse reactions, and functional mechanism of the disease, there has been no systematic evaluation of the relevant results in this field.AimThis paper aims to analyze the theme trends and knowledge structure of drug therapy studies on MDD since the 21st century by employing bibliometric analysis.MethodsLiterature published in PubMed and related to drug therapy studies on MDD were retrieved between 2001 and 2018 in 6-year increments. After extracting major Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms/MeSH subheadings, bi-clustering analysis, social network analysis, and strategic diagrams were employed to complete bibliometric analysis.ResultsOverall, 1,577, 2,680, 2,848 relevant research articles were retrieved for the periods during 2001–2006, 2007–2012, and 2013–2018, respectively. In line with strategic diagrams, the main undeveloped and peripheral theme clusters during 2001–2006 were functional mechanisms of antidepressants in pathophysiology, neuroendocrinology and neural biochemistry. These themes were replaced during 2007–2012 by clinical efficacy and influencing factors of antidepressants with or without psychotherapy, mechanisms of adverse reactions of antidepressants, and predictive studies of clinical therapeutic effects of antidepressants based on brain imaging. During 2013–2018 application and evaluation of new antidepressant agents, early identification and prevention of suicide of patients with MDD, as well as genetic- or bio-markers affecting the response and efficacy of antidepressants were the primary themes. Based on social network analyses, emerging hotspots, such as antidepressive agents, second-generation/adverse effects, depressive disorder, major/metabolism, psychotherapy/methods, and brain/drug effects could be identified during 2007–2012 and 2013–2018.ConclusionsThese undeveloped theme clusters and emerging hotspots can be helpful for researchers to clarify the current status of their respective fields and future trends, and to generate novel ideas that may launch new research directions.
Highlights
Major depressive disorder (MDD), termed as clinical/unipolar depressive disorder, affects more than 264 million people worldwide
Results of the social network analysis (SNA) of the three periods are presented in Figure 7, and the main statistical parameters, such as degree, betweenness, and closeness centrality, were employed to analyze the knowledge structure of drug therapy studies on MDD between 2001 and 2018 (Tables 5 and 6)
Given that the size of a node of an SNA is measured by its betweenness centrality, we found that the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms “depressive disorder, major/drug therapy”, and “antidepressive agents/therapeutic use” displayed the highest same value of betweenness centrality of 13.055 and the highest same value of closeness centrality of 100.000 (Table 6)
Summary
Major depressive disorder (MDD), termed as clinical/unipolar depressive disorder, affects more than 264 million people worldwide. It is reported that psychiatric disorders account for 22.8% of the global burden of disease, among which MDD is the main cause of disability, and this proportion will increase along with population growth and ageing [9]. World Health Organization (WHO) has ranked MDD as the second leading cause of disability globally, and predicts it to be one of the top three leading causes of disease burden in high-income countries by 2030, second only to HIV/AIDS [10]. Antidepressant treatment is one of the most effective ways of relieving or curing depressive symptoms in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). Many studies have explored the efficacy, tolerability, adverse reactions, and functional mechanism of the disease, there has been no systematic evaluation of the relevant results in this field
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
