Towards a Smart Healthcare System for Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) Management: A Bibliometric Analysis

The World Health Organization has chastised the persistence and gradual progression of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and their impact on human nature, which necessitates an urgent review of measures to combat them. This study employed a bibliometric analysis to comprehensively review and synthesise the body of knowledge on smart healthcare systems for NCD management. The study identified major developments, knowledge gaps, and major contributors to the research field. Biblioshiny and VOSviewer software were used to retrieve data from the Scopus database, and performance analysis and science mapping were used to analyse the data. The search string used was ((“Smart Healthcare” OR “Smart Healthcare System” OR “Intelligent Healthcare” OR “Healthcare IoT”) AND (“Non-Communicable Disease” OR “NCDs” OR “Chronic Disease” OR “Chronic Illness”) AND (“Management” OR “Disease Management” OR “Healthcare Management” OR “Patient Management”)). The results revealed that the number of articles on smart healthcare systems for NCD management increased exponentially between 2007 and 2023, signifying a rising need for technology improvements in combating NCDs. Keywords that emerged include machine learning, remote sensing, Internet of Things, wearable devices, and mobile health. These terms are increasingly being used within healthcare and reflect a multidisciplinary approach to the management of NCDs. The study recommends that given the substantial co-authorship, more interdisciplinary research can be used to explore underrepresented topics or approaches.