Exploring the landscape of lymphatic filariasis research in India: A scientometric analysis of two decades from 2000 to 2024.

Abstract

<h4>Background</h4>The launch of the Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis (GPELF) in 2000 catalysed a surge in research and programmatic initiatives worldwide. However, a systematic evaluation of global LF research output over the past two decades remains limited. This scientometric analysis maps LF research from 2000 to 2024, with a special focus on India's contribution.<h4>Methods and results</h4>Original research articles on LF published between 2000 and 2024 were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection using title-specific MeSH keywords. Bibliographic data were analysed using the bibliometrix package in R. A total of 1,746 documents were identified, with an average annual growth rate of 1.13%. Global output peaked in 2014, while India's highest was in 2012. India showed a declining trend, reaching a low of 12 articles in 2018. The USA led in overall publication output (21.1%), followed by India (18.3%) and the UK (10.3%). Despite high volume, India exhibits fewer international collaborations and a moderate citation impact. Major contributors included the Indian Council of Medical Research (219 publications) and the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (152). Although parasitology remained a dominant theme, there was a gradual shift toward microbiology, pharmacology, and science and technology. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases was the most productive journal. Globally, the Gates Foundation and the National Institutes of Health were leading funders, while the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research and the ICMR were India's leading domestic funders.<h4>Conclusions</h4>LF research in India has shown a noticeable decline since 2017, despite its high disease burden. High-income countries dominate in citation impact and collaborations, whereas low- and middle-income countries, including India, lag behind even with a high publication volume. Strategic efforts to strengthen international partnerships, research funding, equitable co-authorship between endemic and non-endemic countries, facilitating early-career exchange programmes, adopting open-access agreements and building institutional capacity are essential to enhance the impact of LF research in India and other endemic countries. Equally important is ensuring that research priorities and implementation strategies are tailored to local programmatic and epidemiological contexts.