DefinePK

Abstract

Background: This study examines trends in emergency medicine research published in Pakistan from 2012 to 2021. Weaimed to identify research gaps and areas needing further investigation.Materials & Methods: We searched online databases (PubMed, CINAHL, Cochrane, EBSCO) for studies related to emergen-cy medicine in Pakistan published between January 2012 and December 2021. Studies were included if they were publishedin English, peer-reviewed, and focused on emergency medicine in Pakistan. Two reviewers assessed eligibility and studyquality.Results: One hundred fifty articles were included in the review out of 871 that met the eligibility criteria. A significant portionof these articles was published in 2020, accounting for 22.7% of the total, followed by 2016 and 2017, which together con-tributed 12%. Conversely, 2021 had the fewest publications, with only 1.3% of studies released. During this period, the mostcommon study design was the cross-sectional design, representing 40.7% of all studies, while mixed-methods and qualita-tive studies were the least common, each accounting for 1.3%. Regarding risk of bias, 48% of the studies were assessed ashaving a moderate level, and 50% were identified as having a high risk of confounding factors. Overall, approximately 80%of the articles were classified as having predominantly moderate quality. The primary focus of the cross-sectional and cohortstudies, as well as case reports, was on Infectious Diseases. Notably, a mixed-methods study on Violence and Trauma waspublished in 2021, and a qualitative study from 2015 examined ethical considerations.Conclusion: This scoping review emphasizes the prevalence of cross-sectional study designs and themes related to infec-tious diseases in Pakistani emergency medicine research, with most articles rated as moderate quality. Future researchshould focus on understudied areas, including social determinants of health, resource-limited settings, and cost-effective-ness analyses.Keywords: Scoping, review, emergency medicine, Scoping Review