Mapping the Landscape of Psoriasis Research in Traditional Medicine: A VOS viewer-Based Bibliometric Review (1980–2024)

Abstract

Background: Psoriasis is a chronic, inflammatory skin condition with global prevalence and complex etiology. Although modern treatments exist, their limitations—including side effects, high costs, and relapse—have led to a resurgence of interest in traditional medical systems such as AYUSH and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Despite growing research interest, there has been no comprehensive bibliometric evaluation of how psoriasis has been studied within these traditional systems of medicine over time. Objective: This study aims to provide a four-decade bibliometric review (1980–2024) of psoriasis research within traditional medical systems. Methods: Bibliographic data were retrieved from PubMed and Scopus using the keywords “Psoriasis” and “Traditional Medicine.” Eligible documents (n = 2,110) were filtered by predefined inclusion/exclusion criteria. VOSviewer software was used to perform bibliometric mapping and visualization of co-authorship, institutional collaboration, keyword co-occurrence, and citation networks. Results: A total of 1,341 documents from PubMed and 769 from Scopus were analyzed. China, India, and the United States were leading contributors. Co-authorship networks showed moderate collaboration, mostly within regional clusters. Keyword analysis revealed a clinical and experimental focus with common terms including “psoriasis,” “humans,” “treatment outcome,” “herbal medicine,” and “inflammation.” Research gaps identified included limited randomized clinical trials, lack of standardization, and insufficient patient-reported data. Conclusion: This study provides the first systematic bibliometric overview of psoriasis-related research in traditional systems of medicine, revealing both progress and persistent gaps. The findings underscore the need for multidisciplinary collaboration, enhanced regulatory frameworks, and large-scale clinical validation to enable global integration of traditional therapies for psoriasis.