Twenty years of clear aligner therapy: a bibliometric analysis (2002-2022)

Abstract

Abstract Introduction Clear aligner (CA) therapy has become popular worldwide but there is little research in the area from the perspective of bibliometrics. The present study aimed to identify the most impactful studies on CA over its 20 years of publishing since 2002. Methods The Web of Science database was used to retrieve study records on CA for the period between 2002 and 2022. Two authors manually screened the related studies. CiteSpace was used to analyse the country and institutional co-operation, keywords and citations with the strongest ‘burst’. Results The number of CA publications has increased and a total of 613 studies were included in the current analysis. The American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics was the leading publishing journal reporting 79 published CA articles and 1627 total citations. Italy had the most significant productivity in this field (142/613, 23.16%). The United States of America was the leading country with the highest international collaboration. Based on the results of keyword analysis, orthodontic treatment, digital orthodontics, superimposition, and apical root resorption were previous research emphases. Conclusions The present analysis indicates that the treatment outcomes of CA therapy is the focus of current studies and provides developments for future research. The results provide an increased and comprehensive understanding of the state of the art of CA treatment.