Next Article in Journal
Psychological Assessment and Psychosocial Outcomes in Bariatric Surgery Candidates: A Retrospective Study
Previous Article in Journal
Effectiveness of Physical Activity-Led Workplace Health Promotion Interventions: A Systematic Review
 
 
Font Type:
Arial Georgia Verdana
Font Size:
Aa Aa Aa
Line Spacing:
Column Width:
Background:
This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

Hotspots and Trends in Research on Early Warning of Infectious Diseases: A Bibliometric Analysis Using CiteSpace

Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety and Emergency Prevention and Control Technology of Higher Education Institutions in Jiangsu Province, Department of Social Medicine and Health Education, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 211166, China
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Healthcare 2025, 13(11), 1293; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13111293
Submission received: 22 April 2025 / Revised: 24 May 2025 / Accepted: 26 May 2025 / Published: 29 May 2025

Abstract

Background: Emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases (EIDs and Re-EIDs) cause significant economic crises and public health problems worldwide. Epidemics appear to be more frequent, complex, and harder to prevent. Early warning systems can significantly reduce outbreak response times, contributing to better patient outcomes. Improving early warning systems and methods might be one of the most effective responses. This study employs a bibliometric analysis to dissect the global research hotspots and evolutionary trends in the field of infectious disease early warning, with the aim of providing guidance for optimizing public health emergency management strategies. Methods: Publications related to the role of early warning systems in detecting and responding to infectious disease outbreaks from 1999 to 2024 were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database. CiteSpace software was used to analyze the datasets and generate knowledge visualization maps. Results: A total of 798 relevant publications are included. The number of annual publications has sharply increased since 2000. The USA produced the highest number of publications and established the most extensive cooperation relationships. The Chinese Center for Disease Control & Prevention was the most productive institution. Drake, John M was the most prolific author, while the World Health Organization and AHMED W were the most cited authors. The top two cited references mainly focused on wastewater surveillance of SARS-CoV-2. The most common keywords were “infectious disease”, “outbreak”, “transmission”, “virus”, and “climate change”. The basic keyword “climate” ranked the first and long duration with the strongest citation burst. “SARS-CoV-2”, “One Health”, “early warning system”, “artificial intelligence (AI)”, and “wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE)” were emerging research foci. Conclusions: Over the past two decades, research on early warning of infectious diseases has focused on climate change, influenza, SARS, virus, machine learning, warning signals and systems, artificial intelligence, and so on. Current research hotspots include wastewater-based epidemiology, sewage, One Health, and artificial intelligence, as well as the early warning and monitoring of COVID-19. Research foci in this area have evolved from focusing on climate–disease interactions to pathogen monitoring systems, and ultimately to the “One Health” integrated framework. Our research findings underscore the imperative for public health policymakers to prioritize investments in real-time surveillance infrastructure, particularly wastewater-based epidemiology and AI-driven predictive models, and strengthen interdisciplinary collaboration frameworks under the One Health paradigm. Developing an integrated human–animal–environment monitoring system will serve as a critical development direction for early warning systems for epidemics.
Keywords: CiteSpace; bibliometric analysis; early warning; infectious diseases CiteSpace; bibliometric analysis; early warning; infectious diseases

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Yang, X.; Wang, H.; Lu, H. Hotspots and Trends in Research on Early Warning of Infectious Diseases: A Bibliometric Analysis Using CiteSpace. Healthcare 2025, 13, 1293. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13111293

AMA Style

Yang X, Wang H, Lu H. Hotspots and Trends in Research on Early Warning of Infectious Diseases: A Bibliometric Analysis Using CiteSpace. Healthcare. 2025; 13(11):1293. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13111293

Chicago/Turabian Style

Yang, Xue, Hao Wang, and Hui Lu. 2025. "Hotspots and Trends in Research on Early Warning of Infectious Diseases: A Bibliometric Analysis Using CiteSpace" Healthcare 13, no. 11: 1293. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13111293

APA Style

Yang, X., Wang, H., & Lu, H. (2025). Hotspots and Trends in Research on Early Warning of Infectious Diseases: A Bibliometric Analysis Using CiteSpace. Healthcare, 13(11), 1293. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13111293

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

Article Metrics

Back to TopTop