The cutting-edge roles of lasers in endodontics: A bibliometric and scientometric analysis of the 100 most-cited articles

Purpose: This bibliometric and scientometric analysis aimed to delve into the forefront roles of lasers in endodontics from 1990 to 2024. Methods: A comprehensive electronic search was conducted using "Clarivate Analytics Web of Science, All Databases" to retrieve the most-cited articles pertaining to the topic. These articles were then ranked in descending order according to their citation counts and the top 100 were selected for further analysis. Parameters including citation density, publication year, journal, journal impact factor (IF), country, institution, author, study design, study field, evidence level, laser type, and keywords were meticulously analyzed. Results: The mean and standard deviations of total citation and citation density were 106.47 +/- 65.76 and 7.61 +/- 5.13, respectively. Positive and negative correlations were found between the number of citations and citation density and age of publication. While the mean number of citations was significantly higher in the period 2001-2010 compared to the other periods (P < 0.05), values were similar between the periods 1990-2000 and 2011-2014 (P > 0.05). Articles were mainly published in the Journal of Endodontics. The most productive country, institutions, and author were the United States, the University of Showa, and Koukichi Matsumoto. Diode and Er: YAG lasers were commonly investigated. Ex vivo studies were mainly performed followed by in vitro ones. The main study field was "antimicrobial effect". Among keywords, "photodynamic therapy" was used more frequently. Conclusion: Lasers are predominantly utilized to leverage their antimicrobial efficacy. Advancements in technology will lead to improvements in the properties of lasers, thereby enhancing the disinfection of the root canal system.