Abstract
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become a major public health concern, affecting an estimated 20-30% of the global population. While statins are commonly prescribed for NAFLD patients, their use is often linked to adverse effects. Consequently, medicinal plants have attracted interest due to their potential therapeutic benefits. This study aimed to evaluate the research landscape on medicinal plants and NAFLD from 2005 to 2024. We retrieved 1,126 articles from the Scopus database and included only those published in English. Bibliometric analysis was performed using Microsoft Office Excel to collect and organise data, Harzing’s Publish and Perish for citation analysis, and VOSviewer for data visualisation and cluster analysis. The analysis covered publication growth, citation metrics, leading countries, research areas, organizations, journals, and the most cited papers. Among the 63 countries contributing to this field, China was the predominant contributor, accounting for over half of the total publications (792 of 1,126). The top research area was ‘Medicine’, reflecting the fact that NAFLD is a significant global health issue requiring extensive medical research to develop effective treatments. Keywords such as NAFLD, animal model, and lipid dominated the literature. The most cited article received 1,442 citations, which related to the pathogenesis of liver disease involves oxidative stress. This bibliometric analysis highlights the growing research interest in medicinal plants for the treatment of NAFLD, underscoring a global effort to explore alternative and complementary therapies. It also provides an evidence-based framework to guide future NAFLD research priorities and inform health policy on the clinical and public health integration of medicinal plant–based interventions.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Nabilah Auni Marzuki, Balqis Karimah Mohd Amri, Fazalda Annuar, Liyana Nursyahirah Johari, Zaleha Kamaludin, Wan Amir Nizam Wan Ahmad, Liza Noordin