Quantitative evaluation of computational fluid dynamics application development in the cardiovascular field through literature retrieval and bibliometric analysis

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The application of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) in the cardiovascular field has been increasingly observed to analyze hemodynamic conditions within intravascular lumens. This study aims to quantitatively elucidate the development of CFD technology on hemodynamics over the past two decades through literature retrieval and bibliometric analysis. METHODS: The literature retrieval is conducted using the Web of Science database, where all academic articles concerning hemodynamic analysis using CFD technology in the past 20 years are included. The retrieval strategy was primarily based on three aspects: time, cardiovascular anatomical parts, and cardiovascular diseases. RESULTS: Over the past two decades, the publication of CFD-focused articles in the cardiovascular field has grown steadily at an average annual rate of 10.19%, with a stable distribution across anatomical parts. A similar overall trend is observed for research on cardiovascular diseases (11.89% annual growth). However, in recent years, the growth rates for publications on individual diseases have begun to diverge significantly. CONCLUSIONS: The quantitative evidence from literature retrieval and bibliometric analysis shows the continuous development of CFD technology in the cardiovascular field over the past two decades. The consistent distribution of research across different cardiovascular anatomical parts suggests a balanced development process. However, the development of CFD technology on specific cardiovascular diseases might perform distinctively in the coming years.