2025, Vol. 29 ›› Issue (34): 7470-7480

Tracking of research trends and hotspots in medical magnesium alloy materials

Ma Yucong, Ouyang Zhengzheng, Liu Xiaojie, Yang Sifei   

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Research results related to medical magnesium alloy materials have increased year by year. However, the literature in the field of medical magnesium alloy materials has not yet passed the systematic evaluation of measurement.
OBJECTIVE: To present the research status of medical magnesium alloy materials and explore the research trends and hotspots of this field.  
METHODS: The core data set of Web of Science was used as the literature source to search the relevant researches on medical magnesium alloy materials from 2014 to 2024. The knowledge map was generated by using CiteSpace software with authors, countries, institutions, journals, keywords, and co-citations as nodes for visualization analysis.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: (1) The number of papers on medical magnesium alloy materials has been growing steadily in the past decade. China has the largest number of articles, and is the backbone of the field, but the quality of articles and international influence need to be further improved. The Chinese Academy of Sciences and Peking University are the pioneering institutions in this field, constructing a cooperative network covering many well-known institutions at home and abroad. The journal BIOACT MATER has the greatest intensity of outbreaks, and the impact of journal in the field will be further expanded in the future. (2) The microstructure, degradation behavior, biocompatibility, mechanical properties and corrosion resistance of medical magnesium alloy materials have been hot research topics in recent years. Alloying technology, as a key way to give medical alloys diversified characteristics, has become a research focus for researchers to explore. (3) Comprehensively applying various modification means to initially regulate the degradation mode of the material and to obtain the appropriate degradation rate may be a future research trend. In the future, magnesium alloy products should be customized for specific application scenarios, under the guidance of the concept of “precise bio-adaptation,” realizing the transformation from single material design to overall design of structure and function.

Key words: medical magnesium alloy material, bibliometric analysis, visualization, co-citation, research hotspot, CiteSpace, engineered material