Analysis of Artificial Intelligence Studies with a Medical Ethics Perspective: A Bibliometric Study

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Sara Dakhesh 1
Shahnaz Khademizadeh 2
Zeinab Jozi 2
1 6. Postdoctoral researcher, Department of Medical library and information sciences, school of Allied Medical sciences, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
2 Department of Knowledge and Information Science, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran.
10.48305/him.2025.45197.1292
Abstract
Introduction: Today, the significant application of artificial intelligence (AI) technology in healthcare and medical sciences has brought numerous ethical challenges to the health system. Therefore, the present study analyzes the bibliometrics of all publications related to medical ethics in the application of AI tools.

Methods: This study is descriptive-analytical and was conducted using a scientometrics approach. The research population includes all publications related to medical ethics in AI studies indexed in the Web of Science core collection.

Results: By implementing a search strategy, 354 scientific works related to the concept of medical ethics in the application of artificial intelligence tools were identified. Most of these documents were research articles (70.05%). From 2019 to the search date (December 4, 2024), the years 2024, 2023, and 2021 saw significant growth in scientific publications on artificial intelligence related to medical ethics. It was also reported that the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom, with 89, 41, and 36 works respectively, contributed the most to the publication of studies in this field. Additionally, citation analysis of these works revealed that research from these three countries—the United States (with 1,312 received citations), Germany (with 927 received citations), and the United Kingdom (with 893 received citations)—received the highest number of citations in this area of study.

Conclusion: It can be inferred that research related to the implementation of artificial intelligence technology with a medical-ethical perspective is growing. Therefore, it is necessary that, through purposeful and principled development of these publications, broader awareness and dissemination of medical ethics standards—especially in the age of artificial intelligence—be promoted.

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