Knowledge production on mHEALTH as a point-of-care tool in Pediatric Dentistry: a bibliometric analysis
Keywords:
eHealth; mHealth; teledentistry; pediatric dentistry; bibliometric analysisAbstract
Introduction: Pediatric dentistry is a healthcare specialty in which teledentistry was incorporated into official guidance document in 2021. Since them, mHealth has emerged as a predominant modality for delivering teledentistry services in pediatric dentistry.
Objectives: This bibliometric analysis aimed to identify the leading countries, institutions and researchers advancing the application of mHealth in pediatric dentistry.
Methodos: A literature search across PubMed, Cochrane Library, and ScienceDirect retrieved 39 publications that met the inclusion criteria. The selected publications were imported into Bibliometrix software (R package) to perform visual analysis, including publication and citation metrics such as authors, productivity and institutional output. Science mapping was conducted using a co-occurrence analysis and thematic mapping to examine how mHealth has been integrated into pediatric dentistry.
Results: The included articles were published between 2013 and 2024, with an average of approximately four publications per year. Brazil, Finland, and India were the most productive countries in terms of publication output. Science mapping identified computers and handheld devices as an emerging thematic cluster. Seventeen percent of the studies focused on the development of mobile applications.
Conclusion: This bibliometric analysis provides a comprehensive overview of the intellectual structure of mHealth in pediatric dentistry, encompassing applications such as oral health education in preschoolers; caries risk assessment, nursing care, sleep-disordered breathing, special health care needs, oral health surveillance and promotion, screening and diagnosis, and behavior management.
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