Coinfection between Pulmonary Tuberculosis and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A 20-year Bibliometric Study

Background: Pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) has a major global impact and has been reported as one of the most relevant complications in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The aim of this study was to analyze the bibliometric parameters of the scientific literature indexed in Scopus regarding the coinfection between PTB and SLE. Methods: A bibliometric study was conducted using a search strategy with MeSH terms to identify articles indexed in Scopus. After screening, 122 articles were included in the study. Bibliometric tools (SciVal, VOSviewer, and Bibliometrix) were used to analyze publication metadata. Results: Scientific production showed an annual growth rate of 4.56%, with a mean of 22.4 citations per publication per year. Rheumatology International, ranked in Q2, was the most relevant journal in the field of PTB and SLE, followed by Clinical Rheumatology and the Indian Journal of Tuberculosis. India demonstrated the greatest growth, with approximately 125 articles, whereas Brazil ranked fifth with sustained productivity. National collaboration was most frequent (46.7%); however, articles with international authorship achieved greater impact, with 209.8 citations per publication and 148% more citations than expected. Conclusion: Scientific output on PTB and SLE has steadily increased over the past 20 years. India, China, and Brazil lead the field, with international cooperation playing an emerging but significant role. The main publication venues are journals ranked in Q2 and Q3.