Resurgent threat in a changing climate: A 20-year bibliometric analysis of global Chikungunya research evolution and pandemic preparedness
PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases·
- DOI
- 10.1371/journal.pntd.0013959
- PMID
- —
- PMCID
- —
- OpenAlex
- W7131090189
- Study type
- Journal article
- Publisher
- Public Library of Science (PLoS)
- Article type
- journal-article
- Integrity
- current
Why this research matters now
Highlights increasing academic investment in vaccine platforms and climate-linked transmission models. Identifies structural imbalances in multinational research partnerships and recommends aligning pathogen readiness initiatives with broader environmental health planning.
Structured evidence summary
Research question
Maps two decades of global scientific output to determine current priorities and unmet needs in chikungunya pandemic readiness.
Study design
Bibliometric evaluation of 8,125 indexed articles published between 2004 and 2025, utilizing software tools to track citation trends, author networks, and keyword co-occurrence patterns.
Population and setting
Global scientific literature and publishing records rather than a defined clinical or demographic cohort.
Main findings
Article production expanded sevenfold following 2013, coinciding with major regional outbreaks. Research activity concentrated within four primary national hubs. Scholarly focus has progressively shifted toward immunization development and environmental transmission factors, while diagnostic differentiation and crisis management keywords have diminished in frequency.
Public-health relevance
Highlights increasing academic investment in vaccine platforms and climate-linked transmission models. Identifies structural imbalances in multinational research partnerships and recommends aligning pathogen readiness initiatives with broader environmental health planning.
Important limitations
Analysis depends entirely on database-indexed publications, potentially overlooking non-traditional or regionally restricted research outputs. The methodology quantifies scholarly productivity and thematic shifts rather than measuring actual disease incidence or intervention effectiveness.
GIDS interpretation
Functions as a retrospective mapping of academic publishing trends instead of an active monitoring report. Offers context on how research emphasis has evolved toward preventive technologies and ecological drivers without generating new empirical signal data.
Related GIDS surveillance
Literature context does not validate, explain, or change a surveillance signal. Exact and contextual relationships are shown separately.
Evidence relationships
This article has 13 auditable classifier relationships to diseases, places, topics, and study design.