Lee Geunin, Kang Young Ae, Park Youngmok
Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Severance Hospital, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Institute for Immunology and Immunological Diseases, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Tuberc Respir Dis (Seoul). 2025 Apr;88(2):353-360. doi: 10.4046/trd.2024.0158. Epub 2025 Jan 14.
Current research on nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) is multidisciplinary, necessitating proper organization to obtain comprehensive insight. Therefore, a bibliometric analysis was performed to identify NTM research characteristics in South Korea.
The Web of Science was searched for NTM articles authored by Koreans at Korean institutions until March 2023. We collected data on authors, publication year, article type, study design, research area, citations, research institutes, and funding sources.
Of the 28,092 articles on NTM, Koreans authored 868. After excluding 167 unrelated studies, 701 relevant articles were analyzed. The first study was from 1992, with publication rates markedly increasing from 2004 onward. Basic research constituted 41.3% (n=290) of the papers, whereas clinical research represented 44.7% (n=313). Basic research consisted mostly of biochemistry studies (n=73, 10.4%), whereas clinical research primarily involved retrospective studies (n=118, 16.8%). Fifty-four institutions participated in NTM research, with the top five contributing to 71% (n=498) of the publications. The National Research Foundation of Korea was the most significant funding source, supporting 181 studies (32.5% of funded articles). Citation analysis revealed a median citation count of 10 (interquartile range, 3 to 13), with clinical research dominating the top-cited articles and a rise in publications in high-impact journals over time.
The quality and quantity of NTM research in South Korea has improved. However, it is concentrated in a few institutions and is largely funded by a few sources. Future research should use more diverse funding sources, be conducted in more institutions, and prioritize prospective study designs to enhance the understanding and treatment of NTM.
目前关于非结核分枝杆菌（NTM）的研究是多学科的，需要进行适当的组织以获得全面的见解。因此，进行了文献计量分析以确定韩国NTM研究的特征。
在Web of Science中检索截至2023年3月韩国机构的韩国人撰写的NTM文章。我们收集了关于作者、发表年份、文章类型、研究设计、研究领域、引用次数、研究机构和资金来源的数据。
在28,092篇关于NTM的文章中，韩国人撰写了868篇。排除167项无关研究后，对701篇相关文章进行了分析。第一项研究来自1992年，从2004年起发表率显著增加。基础研究占论文的41.3%（n = 290），而临床研究占44.7%（n = 313）。基础研究主要包括生物化学研究（n = 73，10.4%），而临床研究主要涉及回顾性研究（n = 118，16.8%）。54个机构参与了NTM研究，排名前五的机构贡献了71%（n = 498）的出版物。韩国国家研究基金会是最重要的资金来源，支持了181项研究（占资助文章的32.5%）。引用分析显示，引用次数中位数为10（四分位间距，3至13），临床研究在被引用次数最多的文章中占主导地位，并且随着时间的推移高影响力期刊上的出版物有所增加。
韩国NTM研究的质量和数量有所提高。然而，它集中在少数机构，并且在很大程度上由少数来源提供资金。未来的研究应使用更多样化的资金来源，在更多机构中进行，并优先考虑前瞻性研究设计，以加强对NTM的理解和治疗。
