Bibliometric Analysis of Clinical Trials on Tobacco Use and Mental Health: Research Trends and Implications for Oral Health

Abstract

Mental illness and tobacco use are often associated. This study aimed to analyze the trends in tobacco use and mental health research published from 2014 to 2024, including oral health-related research within this literature, and to identify gaps for future work. An online search was conducted in the PubMed database on January 1, 2025, using topic-specific keywords to identify relevant publications. After applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of 2,190 articles published between 2014 and 2024 were selected. VOSviewer and Biblioshiny software were used for analysis. There is an overall decline in publishing volume with an annual growth rate of −4.51%. Tidey Jennifer W has the highest total link strength value of 123. The Nicotine & Tobacco Research journal emerged as a leading journal. The USA dominated the research output. Global partnerships are moderately collaborative, with only 15.53% of studies involving cross-border collaboration. Only five trials (0.23%) addressed all three domains—tobacco use, psychological or behavioral intervention, and oral health, which points to an unaddressed research gap. The thematic analysis indicates a shift in the focus of studies, moving from risk factors to psychological aspects. The bibliometric analysis reveals an overall decline in publishing volume. The co-authorship data reveal few single-authored articles and a large number of co-authors in each publication. Oral health remains a small part of this literature. More work is needed on personalized strategies for quitting smoking, including health interventions, digital tools, and cultural factors, particularly for people with mental health conditions and for integrating tobacco cessation into routine dental care.