Bibliometric Trends in Inflammasome‑Driven Pyroptosis and Cardiovascular Disease.

Background and purposeThis bibliometric study provides the first comprehensive synthesis of inflammasome‑driven pyroptosis research in cardiovascular disease (CVD), systematically mapping its evolution. Pyroptosis, an inflammatory form of programmed cell death triggered by inflammasome activation, plays a critical role in various CVDs, including hypertension, ischemia‑reperfusion injury (I/R injury), atherosclerosis, and heart failure (HF). Despite rapid growth of the literature, no bibliometric analysis has specifically focused on this area.Patients and methodsData were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection (1998-April 27, 2025). Bibliometric and visual analyses were performed using CiteSpace and VOSviewer to examine publication trends, country/region, funding agency, institution, author, journal, subject category, co‑cited reference, keyword co‑occurrence, and emerging hotspots.ResultsA total of 4,511 documents (2,918 original articles and 1,593 reviews) were included. China contributed 2,259 publications (50.1% of total) with 56,326 citations; the United States contributed 1,022 publications (22.7%) with 79,057 citations and the highest country‑level h‑index (147); and Italy ranked third with 290 publications (6.4%). Harvard University and its affiliated institutions led in both publication quantity and impact (h‑index, citations per article). Keyword co‑occurrence identified four clusters: pyroptosis mechanisms, NLRP3 inflammasome, signaling pathways, and CVDs. Recent bursts (2024‑2025) highlight "pyroptosis" and "ferroptosis" as emerging frontiers.ConclusionThis bibliometric study identifies NLRP3 as the central research focus in inflammasome‑driven pyroptosis research, with the strongest citation burst. The findings reveal a shift from basic mechanistic studies toward translational research, highlighting emerging priorities such as the crosstalk between pyroptosis and ferroptosis and the need for patient stratification in future clinical trials.