This document provides an overview of conducting a literature review in health informatics. It discusses formulating a research question, identifying relevant resources like PubMed and Scopus, developing search strategies using keywords and MeSH terms, evaluating search results, and organizing findings to write a literature review. PubMed is described as a biomedical database that can be searched using MeSH or keywords to locate journal citations and abstracts. Steps for structuring a PubMed search around a sample question on the efficiency of St. John's wort for smoking cessation are outlined.
Introduction to health informatics : Research Questions
1. INTRODUCTION TO HEALTH INFORMATICS : Strategies for Answering Research Questions Nazi Torabi Research & Instructional Librarian Allyn & Betty Taylor Library April 12, 2011 http://www.slideshare.net/ntorabi/
2. Objectives To provide an overview of the steps involved with conducting a research literature review To familiarize you with a variety of medical resources
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4. What is Literature Review? A literature review seeks to describe, summarize, evaluate, clarify and/or integrate the content of primary reports (research articles). It does not report new primary research itself. Cooper, H. M. (1988) 'The structure of knowledge synthesis' Knowledge in Society, vol. 1, pp. 104-126
9. to identify methods that could be relevant to your projectTo gain knowledge in the field To identify other people who have the same interest as you do (a researcher network is a valuable resource) You might be required to conduct one during your residency program Bourner, T. (1996) 'The research process: four steps to success', in Greenfield, T. (ed), Research methods: guidance for postgraduates, Arnold, London.
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13. Steps involved in conducting a Literature Review Formulate your research question (define your scope and boundary) Pick and prioritize your resource(s) Develop a search strategy and conduct a literature search Evaluate your results Read the articles in-depth Collect / Organize / Synthesis your results Write your literature review
26. Keyword vs. MeSH Searching Keyword Searching Fast and easy The results might be relevant or irrelevant MeSH Searching Can provide much needed precision MeSH Retrieves Subjects – Not Words
38. St John Wort SJW Saint John's Wort Smoking Smoking cessation Tobacco use cessation Nicotine withdrawal
39. Sample Search Question What is the diagnostic utility of the urine biological tumor marker nmp22 (nuclear matrix protein 22) in detecting recurrence of bladder cancer? Adapted from http://ebmlibrarian.wetpaint.com/page/Oncology/links
52. Picking the right Database Consider the following: Subject coverage Time span for coverage Types of publications Overlap in content with other resources Frequency of update How does the database work (index terms and other features)
53. For more visit http://www.lib.uwo.ca/programs/generalmedicine/
57. Google Scholar strengths Easy to use, familiar search interface Filters out the extensive popular sources found in a similar Google search Searches full text Easy cross-disciplinary searching Provides access to full text via Library Links "Cited by" allows for forward citation searching
58. Google Scholar weaknesses Not indexed articles Fewer ways to limit and filter results than other research databases Unknown coverage of research literature, possible gaps in coverage No clear criteria of "scholarly" literature stated Frequency of updates unclear, citations are not as current as citations in specialized databases such as PubMed
59. Questions Need library related assistance?Please don’t hesitate to contact us: Nazi Torabi 519-661-2111 x88992 ntorabi@uwo.ca IM a librarian https://www.lib.uwo.ca/chat/
Editor's Notes
http://www.deakin.edu.au/library/findout/research/litrev.phphttp://library.ucsc.edu/help/howto/write-a-literature-reviewThe types of scholarship may be empirical, theoretical, critical/analytic, or methodological in nature.
What are the loose ends of the story? It will direct the future researchNetwork of articlesThere is a flow in ideas Coherent review of litrature
at the very least this will save time and it can stop you from making the same mistakes as othersto increase your breadth of knowledge of your subject area
Part of a workIntroduction section of a research articleThesis and dissertations have also introduction sectionStand alone Review articlesSystematic Reviews
http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/tutorials/lit-review/It is a process with few main stepsPick a topicMake a conceptual mapRefine your research questionsAddress a specific, focused and relevant research questionSearchEvaluate your resultsRead them in deptCollect and organize information / use bibliography managementSynthesize the results of the review in an explicit way Identify gaps in existing knowledge Propose future researchIn assessing each piece, consideration should be given to:Provenance—What are the author's credentials? Are the author's arguments supported by evidence (e.g. primary historical material, case studies, narratives, statistics, recent scientific findings)?Objectivity—Is the author's perspective even-handed or prejudicial? Is contrary data considered or is certain pertinent information ignored to prove the author's point?Persuasiveness—Which of the author's theses are most/least convincing?Value—Are the author's arguments and conclusions convincing? Does the work ultimately contribute in any significant way to an understanding of the subject?
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/viewlet/search/subject/subject.htmlWhat characterizes a good question?well-conceptualizedwell-developedrelevantdirect and clearfocusedincludes all components
Single Citation MatcherJournals Database. This database can be used to search for journals by journal title, Medline title abbreviation, or the International Standard Serial Number (ISSN). Clinical QueriesResults of searches on this page are limited to specific clinical research areas using automatic Research Methodology Filters.
PubMed has a total of more than twenty 20 citations and MEDLINE contains more than 17 million.OLDMEDLINE for pre-1966 citations. (~2 million citations as of 2010) Citations out-of-scope (e.g., covering plate tectonics or astrophysics) from some journals, primarily general science and general chemistry journals, for which the life sciences articles are indexed for MEDLINE In-process citations with records for articles before indexed with MeSH, added to MEDLINE or converted to out-of-scope status Citations that precede when a journal was selected for MEDLINE indexing (when supplied electronically by the publisher) Some life science journals that submit full text to PubMed Central and may not have been recommended for inclusion in MEDLINE although they have undergone a review by NLM, and some physics journals that were part of a prototype PubMed in the early 1990s
Created in 1960Similar in concepts to kw on other systemsMeSH represent a medical concept as well as none-medical Can be broad or narrowCitation is enhanced by MESH
Search forBeverages to show the headings / subheadingsSearch for lung cancer review chemotherapy (page 10 or so) to show other things Search for EyelidEyelid is intended under eye because narrower in scope Many heading occurs in different branches http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/disted/video/How to search only with MeSH (try beverages) - look at the handoutTalk about entry termsExplode and majorHow powerful is mapping?Type beveragesNow type beverage*
What characterizes a good question?well-conceptualizedwell-developedrelevantdirect and clearfocusedincludes all components
st john wort AND smoking cessation = 8 results
5. Display your citations Other options include:Summary (one line); Abstract (citation, abstract, and MeSH headings)MEDLINE (text format which includes field tags, used for importing into bibliographic management software like Reference Manager, RefWorks, or EndNote)Limits Part III B Searching in specific fieldsSelect limits that restrict your search results. Click on Limits above the PubMed query box to refine the search strategy to incorporate the language and year range. Your retrieval will still include all the PubMed in process records. IMPORTANT - If you add limits for any of the following: age group, publication type, human or animal, gender or subset you will eliminate retrieval of the PubMed in process records that are waiting for full MEDLINE indexing. Remember, the LIMITS you choose stay in effect for every search until you turn them off.2. Talk about the Boolean operators and make sure participants are comfortable with Boolean operators and stress need for operators to be in UPPER CASE Good example of need for upper case operatorsInfection and immunity VERSUS infection AND immunityThe first search yields all hits from the journal Infection and Immunity whereas the other maps to MESH terms and ‘text word’ searches as expected.
st john wort AND smoking cessation = 8 results st john wort OR SJW OR Saint John's WortANDSmoking OR smoking cessation OR tobacco use cessation OR nicotine withdrawal = 12 results
bladder cancer recurrence nmp 22 = 12 articles
cancer recurrence OR neoplasm recurrence OR "neoplasm recurrence, local"[Mesh]nuclear matrix protein 22 OR nmp22 OR nmp 22 OR nmp-22Bladder cancer = 84 + sensitivity and specificity = 59 + diagnosis = 55
Does it cover the desired subject area?If the subject is covered does it contain the key resources in this area?What is the time span for coverage?What types of publications does it cover?How much overlap in content is there with other resources?What is the update frequency, What is the most current/oldest issue of a particular journal?
http://gollum.lib.uic.edu/medicine/node/70 Electronic indexes to information (bibliographic records, abstracts, full-text documents, directory entries etc.) related to a specific subject. The database software manages the records.
