Mapping traditional Chinese medicine-related complementary interventions for cerebral palsy rehabilitation: a bibliometric and visualization analysis

Vollständiger Abstract

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Purpose This bibliometric and scientometric study mapped the development, collaboration structure, thematic organization, and temporal evolution of Chinese- and English-language research on traditional Chinese medicine (TCM)-related interventions for cerebral palsy (CP). Methods Publications were retrieved from Web of Science Core Collection, Scopus, PubMed, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Data, and the Chinese Science and Technology Journal Database from inception to July 20, 2026. Eligible peer-reviewed articles and reviews were analyzed separately by language. Excel supported descriptive analysis, VOSviewer keyword co-occurrence and overlay mapping, CiteSpace keyword burst detection, and Python with NetworkX coauthorship analysis. Parameter sensitivity analyses and an author-developed integrative thematic synthesis were also performed. Results The final corpora included 3,225 Chinese-language and 230 English-language publications. Chinese-language output rose markedly after the late 2000s and peaked in 2020, whereas English-language output remained smaller and more variable. The English-language coauthorship network was more connected and had a higher multi-author publication rate. At a minimum occurrence threshold of five, 179 of 2,115 standardized Chinese keywords and 70 of 955 standardized English keywords were retained. Five research domains were identified: clinical rehabilitation and functional outcomes; spasticity and symptom-oriented management; TCM intervention modalities; clinical research design and evidence synthesis; and experimental and mechanistic research. Temporal analyses indicated a broadening from general clinical applications toward function-oriented assessment, evidence synthesis, and mechanistic investigation. Sensitivity analyses supported the broad thematic structure, although several recent burst signals were parameter-sensitive. Conclusion The corpora showed distinct publication and collaboration patterns but overlapping thematic structures. These findings map the literature’s organization and evolution but do not establish efficacy, safety, or certainty of evidence. Priorities include prospectively registered multicenter studies, standardized intervention reporting, a core outcome set, systematic safety assessment, and clinically anchored mechanistic research.