Shifting Paradigms in eHealth: A 25-Year Bibliometric Analysis of Global Research Trends and Collaborations: Cluster and Thematic Analyses (Preprint)

Abstract

BACKGROUND To illuminate the evolving landscape of eHealth research, a thorough bibliometric study was undertaken, focusing on the significant contributions within Journal of medical Internet research(JMIR) over the last 25 years. OBJECTIVE This research aimed to compare two distinct periods, 1999-2019 and 2020-2024, by analyzing patterns in author collaborations and keyword frequencies. METHODS Analyzing 7,791 JMIR article abstracts sourced from the Web of Science Core Collection, this study pinpointed key works and authors, shedding light on the development of eHealth technologies, methods, and applications. Through the use of line trends, choropleth maps, radar plots, network diagrams, collaborative maps, thematic maps, and beam plots, both a comprehensive and a comparative view were obtained, facilitated by cluster analysis and sophisticated bibliometric techniques. The research also explored the interdisciplinary nature of eHealth, identifying contributions from diverse fields, including countries, institutions, departments, and authors (collectively referred to as CIDA), as well as referenced journals and keywords. RESULTS The analysis revealed (1) article counts of 4,938 and 2,853 for the two periods, respectively; (2) predominant contributions from the United States, the University of Sydney, medical schools, and David Mohr, as per the CJAL score; (3) a shift in author collaborations from the US and UK to the US and China, and from The University of California San Francisco to The Chinese University of Hong Kong, alongside a disciplinary shift from psychiatry to nursing; (4) a change in prevalent keywords from "internet, care" to "care, health"; (5) the American Journal of Preventive Medicine as the most frequently cited reference, besides JMIR; and (6) the most cited article, by the author Gunther Eysenbach in 2004, cited 2,651 times. CONCLUSIONS The field of eHealth research is moving towards wider international cooperation and a multidisciplinary approach, with notable changes in geographical, institutional, and thematic focus. The bibliometric techniques employed offer valuable insights for future studies across related domains. CLINICALTRIAL Nil