MEDLINE ON OVID

What you need to start On campus: – Library registration (at library counter) – Network registration (at library counter) – Ask for training sessions if you still feel uncomfortable searching Medline Off campus: – Library registration

Background A biomedical database Covering years since 1966 Indexing journals only ± 4800 journals indexed International coverage

How do I access Medline Go to Health Sciences Library Website – Choose Health Databases where Medline is listed Available on-campus and off-campus NB: you must be registered as a library user for access

Click on Health Databases

Click on Medline

Choose a database

Medline can be searched in different time periods Latest 5 years most popular

For starters! – Specify your topic – Break up your topic in its different parts if more than one – Start searching the parts or terms one by one – After searching the different terms, you will combine them logically

Type in the first part of your topic

MESH Medical Subject Headings An alphabetical list of medical terms MESH makes efficient searching easy for everyone

Advantages of MESH – Automatic cross-referencing from non-MESH to MESH terms – Cover British/American spelling – Include singular/plural terms – Include synonyms – MESH terms link to subheadings – MESH terms will take you step-by-step through database searching on OVID

Your typed-in subject term will be “mapped” to a MESH term Click on the term to see tree structure

EXPLODE – MESH terms are organised into tree structures – The TREE structure arranges MESH terms into broader and narrower terms – Medline has an EXPLODE function which enable you to use a broader term while simultaneously include all its narrower terms – Enable the EXPLODE function by clicking on the EXPLODE block at the right side of your MESH term

Click in this box to explode Click in this box to focus

FOCUS – Medline has the powerful function of focusing – Focusing means to throw out less important articles – You can restrict your MESH term to the most important articles on that topic by clicking in the FOCUS block at the far right side of your MESH term

Click on icon for scope note (description)

The information icon shows a scope note of the MESH term

Scroll to top of this page and click on Continue

Subheadings – Subheadings enable searching on specific aspects of your topic eg diagnosis, etiology, economics or epidemiology – You can mark more than one subheading simultaneously – Using subheadings = potent searching!

Choose one or more subheadings or none if so preferred

REMEMBER MANAGEMENT OF A DISEASE: There are different subheading options to cover the management of a disease. You can choose one or more subheadings such as surgery, diet therapy, drug therapy, radiotherapy or even rehabilitation.

Type in the next part of your topic Next topic Set no 1 – result of search

Each new term will take you through the searching process again

BOOLEAN LOGIC AND / OR / NOT OR HEART DISEASES HYPERTENSION

BOOLEAN LOGIC AND HEART DISEASES HYPER TENSION AND

BOOLEAN LOGIC NOT HEART DISEASES Not CONGENITAL HEART DISEASES

Combine the two terms to articles containing both

Set no 3 : result of combined terms with “and”

LIMIT function – Medline covers veterinary sciences, all languages, different publication types, all ages and the time period since – The powerful LIMIT function enables you to limit your search to all of the above categories and more. You can limit eg to only human and English references. – Limit to REVIEW articles – The LIMIT functions can be used by directly marking the LIMIT blocks under the command bar or use the expanded function on the top of the screen (dart board icon)

General Limits Click here for additional limits

Limit your search Click here or in another circle if you wish to limit another set

Press Ctrl button to choose more than one

References will be displayed in bibliographic format under the search strategy

Mark your preferences for display and output format

You can “customize” your display of references

About 65% of the Medline database references provide abstracts

UP subscribes to ± 165 full text journals on OVID. Click on UP full text to see article

Full text article appears on screen in OVID format. Choose.pdf format if available. Saving or ing an article in this format, will loose the graphics and tables.

Another example when you click on “Full text” Maximise window and click on “article via …..” Maximise window and click on “Article via….”

Another example when you click on “Full text” – Choice of platforms

Completion of search : LOGOFF Click here to LOGOFF

Medline HELP – On the Medical Library homepage: You will find a link: 10 Ways to improve your Medline search

FEEL WELCOME TO ASK FOR HELP Created by Myleen Oosthuizen June 2005