A bibliometric analysis of trends and hotspots in Oncostatin M

Oncostatin M (OSM) belongs to the interleukin-6 (IL-6) cytokine family, with diverse physiological effects impacting various diseases. Despite substantial research on OSM, a systematic overview of the field’s current landscape and evolving trends remains limited. This study aims to objectively analyze the research status and trends in OSM using bibliometric applications, providing insights into the field’s evolution and future directions. Publications were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection database (WOSCC) for the period from January 1, 1999, to February 3, 2026. VOSviewer, CiteSpace, and the R package “bibliometrix” were used to generate a visual knowledge map and conduct bibliometric analysis. Our search yielded 811 publications (773 articles and 38 reviews). These involved 4578 authors from 995 institutions across 51 countries/regions. China (159 publications, 0.03 centrality) and the United States (157 publications, 0.55 centrality) are the most pivotal countries. INSERM contributed the most publications (n = 74). Among authors, Richards, C D had the most publications (n = 34) and co-citations (n = 18990), indicating his significant contributions. Keyword analysis revealed that OSM research primarily related to disease such as tumor, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), myocardial infarction (MI), chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) and atopic dermatitis (AD). Research on AD, IBD and CRS has remained active to the present. This bibliometric analysis delineates the primary contributing countries, authors, institutions, and journals in OSM research. The identified hotspots and frontiers underscore the broad physiological roles of OSM. This study provides an objective reference for future scientific research on OSM.