Revisiting 30 years of advances in firefighter protective clothing: a quantitative assessment and bibliometric analysis

Firefighter protective clothing research has undergone rapid development and garnered extensive attention over the past three decades. However, its trajectory lacks quantitative evaluation due to the complex relationship among humans, clothing, and the environment. Here, we aimed to (1) develop an objective and reproducible evaluation index system for the quantitative assessment of firefighter protective clothing research, (2) delineate the developmental stages and their analytical characteristics over the past three decades through bibliometric analysis, and (3) scrutinize the current status, research hotspots, gaps, and future concerns. Our review of 314 publications from the Web of Science Core database (1994–2023) led to the creation of an evaluation index system that integrates the catastrophe progression method with bibliometric analysis, incorporating 10 indicators across 4 dimensions: productivity, influence, development, and innovation. The bibliometric analysis was conducted using the Bibliometrix R package. The results reveal a rapid increase in firefighter protective clothing studies from 1994 to 2023, comprising two stages: the start-up phase (1994–2009) and the rapid development phase (2010–2023). Thematic evolution over three decades indicates a shift from single specific to composite domains, with emerging themes such as achieving a balance in the interaction between the human body, clothing, and environment signaling future research directions. In addition, we visualized the most relevant countries, institutions, journals, authors, articles, and potential challenges during the last 30 years. This review provides an overview of current evidence and minimizes subjectivity bias compared to traditional manual reviews, thus presenting specific future research questions advancing firefighter protective clothing research.