Bibliometric analysis of dual-tesk studies published in physiotherapy and rehabilition

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Dual-task is the ability to simultaneously perform two motor, behavioral, or cognitive tasks with different objectives at the same time. Most of daily life activities consist of dual-tasks. Dual-task training is commonly used in physiotherapy and rehabilitation. This study aimed to conduct a bibliometric analysis of dual-task studies in physiotherapy and rehabilitation to describe their progress and trends. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Data for bibliometric analysis were collected from the Web of Science. The topic search queries were TS=("dual-task" AND "physiotherapy" OR "dual task" AND "physiotherapy" OR "dual-task" AND “physical therapy” OR "dual task" AND "physical therapy"). RESULTS: As a result of the search, 98 publications were found. Mean number of citations for each publication was 27.29. The United States of America ranked first in terms of collaborative network (n=36) and publications (n=28). Nieuwboer (n=57) was the author who contributed the most to dual-task research (n=5). The keyword with the highest occurrence rate (OR) and total link strength (TLS) was “gait” (OR: 32, TLS: 75). The most commonly referred document among dual-task studies was the study of Folstein et al. (n=21). The document with the highest TLS was the study performed by Silsupadol et al. (n=22). CONCLUSIONS: It was observed that there are severe gaps in the literature in terms of dual-task studies in physiotherapy and rehabilitation. It is suggested that dual-task training should be diversified and applied in different populations.