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Abstract Background The use of Khat (Catha edulis) causes health, psychological, and socioeconomic burdens, and many scientific studies have been conducted on this abused plant. A careful review using bibliometric methods is required to increase the usefulness of this research and contribute to curbing the Khat problem. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the intellectual structure, diffusion of knowledge, emerging literature, and impact of collaboration in Khat research using bibliometric analysis. Main body The Scopus database was used to extract scientific papers published from 1961 to 2021 and search for titles and abstracts published in English. The VOSviewer software and MS Excel were used for citation, co-citation, and co-authorship analyses. Bibliographic coupling was calculated using the fractional counting method. There were 996 papers published in 60 years, 159 researchers, and 80 countries that met the criteria for inclusion. The top publishing countries, in order, are Ethiopia, the USA, Saudi Arabia, the UK, and Yemen. The USA provided the most prominent financial support for Khat’s research. 32.1% of research is in the medical field, with eleven more diverse research fields. The top-publishing researcher with the highest total link strength is Mustafa al’Absi from Minnesota Medical School, USA. A bibliometric mapping of citations revealed 113 articles with more than 50 citations, diffused across various research areas. The Journal of Ethnopharmacology is the top-cited source. Ethiopia is the most collaborative country. Molecular mechanisms of Khat toxicity on gene and protein levels are emerging. A network visualization map of terms' occurrence in titles and abstracts resulted in four research themes. Conclusion The current study encourages researchers from various fields to inaugurate new platforms and direct the research toward evidence-based cessation programs.

Background: The use of Khat (Catha edulis) causes health, psychological, and socioeconomic burdens, and many scientific studies have been conducted on this abused plant. A careful review using bibliometric methods is required to increase the usefulness of this research and contribute to curbing the Khat problem. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the intellectual structure, diffusion of knowledge, emerging literature, and impact of collaboration in Khat research using bibliometric analysis. Main body: The Scopus database was used to extract scientific papers published from 1961 to 2021 and search for titles and abstracts published in English. The VOSviewer software and MS Excel were used for citation, co-citation, and co-authorship analyses. Bibliographic coupling was calculated using the fractional counting method. There were 996 papers published in 60 years, 159 researchers, and 80 countries that met the criteria for inclusion. The top publishing countries, in order, are Ethiopia, the USA, Saudi Arabia, the UK, and Yemen. The USA provided the most prominent financial support for Khat’s research. 32.1% of research is in the medical field, with eleven more diverse research fields. The top-publishing researcher with the highest total link strength is Mustafa al’Absi from Minnesota Medical School, USA. A bibliometric mapping of citations revealed 113 articles with more than 50 citations, diffused across various research areas. The Journal of Ethnopharmacology is the top-cited source. Ethiopia is the most collaborative country. Molecular mechanisms of Khat toxicity on gene and protein levels are emerging. A network visualization map of terms' occurrence in titles and abstracts resulted in four research themes. Conclusion: The current study encourages researchers from various fields to inaugurate new platforms and direct the research toward evidence-based cessation programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]