WHO FCTC Global Knowledge Hub for Smokeless Tobacco, ICMR-National Institute of Cancer Prevention & Research, Noida, India.
Data Management Laboratory, ICMR-National Institute of Cancer Prevention & Research, Noida, India.
Indian J Med Res. 2018 Jul;148(1):103-109. doi: 10.4103/ijmr.IJMR_80_18.
BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES: Smokeless tobacco (SLT) has become a global menace; India being one of the high-burden countries contributes about 67 per cent of its users. Although research is ongoing on various aspects of SLT use and its effects, there is a need to identify the still under-researched areas in this field. This study was aimed at delineating the quantum of research on various topics of SLT, with intent to delineate research gaps for guiding future research priorities.
Data about research in SLT were collected from PubMed database using 'smokeless tobacco' as a keyword and applying Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms filter. Data were extracted in XML (Extensible Markup Language) format and parsed into database to extract necessary fields such as PubMed IDs, authors' names, affiliations and MeSH terms. Quantum of research in various aspects of SLT was identified for individual MeSH terms and compared for global and Indian data.
Data analysis of 2857 records revealed that maximum number of articles was devoted to adverse effects (35.6%) followed by epidemiology (32.4%). In comparison, India contributed only 11.7 per cent of records with maximum number of articles on the topics of epidemiology (26%) and adverse effects (45.8%). Higher proportion of research was published on epidemiology, aetiology and prevention and control at global level, while adverse effects of SLT were researched more in Indian studies as compared to global data.
INTERPRETATION & CONCLUSIONS: The present analysis highlighted the paucity of research studies on important topics such as economics and alternative strategies of SLT control, both on the global and regional levels.
无烟烟草（SLT）已成为全球性威胁；印度作为高负担国家之一，其使用者约占全球的 67%。尽管目前正在对 SLT 使用的各个方面及其影响进行研究，但仍需要确定该领域中仍未得到充分研究的领域。本研究旨在描述 SLT 各个主题的研究数量，旨在确定研究差距，以指导未来的研究重点。
使用“无烟烟草”作为关键字并应用医学主题词（MeSH）术语过滤器，从 PubMed 数据库中收集有关 SLT 研究的数据。数据以 XML（可扩展标记语言）格式提取，并解析到数据库中，以提取必要的字段，如 PubMed ID、作者姓名、所属机构和 MeSH 术语。为各个 MeSH 术语确定 SLT 各个方面的研究数量，并比较全球和印度的数据。
对 2857 条记录进行数据分析后发现，最大数量的文章涉及不良影响（35.6%），其次是流行病学（32.4%）。相比之下，印度仅贡献了 11.7%的记录，其中关于流行病学（26%）和不良影响（45.8%）的文章最多。在全球范围内，更多的研究是关于流行病学、病因学和预防控制，而 SLT 的不良影响在印度的研究中比全球数据更受关注。
本分析强调了在重要主题（如经济学和 SLT 控制的替代策略）上，无论是在全球还是区域层面上，研究都很匮乏。
