Immediate Implant Placement and Loading Approaches: Analysis from a Bibliometric Perspective.

Abstract

Purpose: To analyze the use of immediate implants and loading techniques in dentistry through bibliometric methods, evaluate the publication and citation trends in this field, and identify the most influential studies.

Materials and methods: The Web of Science (WoS) Core Collection database was used as the bibliographic source, and a search strategy was applied to identify relevant research articles in the field. Bibliometric assessments were conducted using the Bibliometrix software. These analyses determined the collaboration networks of authors, keywords, and publications; research trends were identified using co-occurrence and co-citation analyses.

Results: The total number of publications peaked between 2010 and 2015. Citation numbers followed a similar trend, peaking in 2008 and becoming more prominent after 2020. Journals such as The International Journal of Oral & Maxillofacial Implants and Clinical Oral Implants Research are leading in the field of dental implantology, and authors like M. Esposito, U. Covani, and A. Piattelli are among the most productive in the field. The United States and Italy are among the leading countries for research in this area. Co-occurrence network analyses, term co-occurrence map analysis, and co-citation analysis network have revealed the study and application trends, topics in implantology research, and the dynamics of this scientific field.

Conclusions: This bibliometric analysis demonstrated that studies on immediate implants and loading techniques represent a broad and continually evolving scientific field, offering potential collaborations and research directions for future researchers.