This document provides guidance on conducting literature searches, including tips for using PubMed, Google Scholar, Cochrane Library, and Embase. It discusses developing search strategies using keywords, Boolean operators, filters and MeSH terms to find relevant articles in PubMed. It also describes how to access full text articles through resources like PMC and MEDIND.

1. Literature Search
L S Deshmukh
DM ( Neonatology)
deshmukhls@yahoo.com

2. Disclaimer
 I am NOT Authority on the subject
 I have No Conflict Of Interest

3. Outline
 Some concepts about resources
Tips on Searching PubMed
 Google Scholar
 Intro: Cochrane Library , UpToDate
& Embase
 Getting free Fulltext

4. Aim of the literature search
 For your thesis topic
 When you treat patients who have conditions
that you may not have encountered earlier
 When you believe you have done something
unique & wish to report
 When you have an incomplete or incorrect
journal reference and wish to verify it

5. Aim of the literature search
 Optimum search
 Include relevant articles
 Exclude irrelevant articles
 Feasible
 Economical
 Comprehensive
 Recall

6. RESOURCES
Type – I Background & factual information
Type – II Current and past research
Type – III Answers to questions / scenarios

10.  What is PubMed?
 The world’s premiere biomedical bibliographic database
 Online access to the MEDLINE database
 Developed & maintained by the National Center for
Biotechnology Information (NCBI) at the National Library
of Medicine (NLM)

12. Accessing Pubmed
http://pubmed.gov
 PubMed is freely available
wherever there is internet access.
 No registration. No subscription.
 No fees. No kidding.

14. Pubmed Search
 Word search
 Boolean operators
 Using Filters
 Field search
 Thesaurus (MeSH) search
 Citation Matcher

15. Word / Keyword Search
 If you search using “keywords”,
you get Hits
containing the keywords
 your hits May or may not be about
your terms

16. searching of PubMed
 Type ‘n Go searching of PubMed: Simply type a
term or terms in the Search Box and click Go.

17. “Keyword” search
 you would retrieve articles “about” your
search term/s and also articles where
the terms are just present

19. BOOLEAN OPERATORS
When you wish to search for more
than one term or concept, use
Boolean Operators
–AND
–OR
–NOT

20. If the term AND is typed into the search box, it must
be in all CAPITAL letters.
This is also true with the other connecting words
allowed: OR and NOT.
Note that “and” is the default connector used in
PubMed. If more than one term is entered into the
search box, PubMed will AND the terms together.

24. What’s in a citation?
Author names.
Title of the journal article
Journal title abbreviation and
publication information
The PMID is like a
Social Security
number for a citation.
It is a unique identifier
for the citation.
This tag indicates the level of
processing this citation has received.
This particular citation has been fully
processed.

25. Bibliographic Record
 Title
 Author/s
 Journal name
 Year
 Volume
• Issue
• Page no
• Abstract / No
abstract
• PMID

26. PUBMED - FILTERS
You can narrow your search
results by
- article type
- text availability
- publication dates
- Species, languages, sex
- Subjects, journal categories
- Ages & search fields

29. The Crux Of Pubmed Mesh
 Medical Subject Headings is the
NLM controlled vocabulary thesaurus
used for indexing PubMed citations.
 to find MeSH terms, including
Subheadings, PublicationTypes,
Supplementary Concepts and
Pharmacological Actions,
 build a PubMed search

35. Combining searches

37. My NCBI
 a feature of the NCBI databases
 allows to save records and searches,
 allows to mail the results
 customize your results display
 need to register

42. Results
can be
emailed

44. Lit Search – Full text article

45. I
II
III

48. Getting Full-Text

51. Using PMC for full text
articles

57. MEDIND
http://medind.nic.in/
The Indian MEDLARS Centre (IMC)
Aim: Provide Online access to
- full-text of Indian biomedical
periodicals
- database of 75 biomedical journals
- journals from 1985 onwards

59. Google Scholar
http://scholar.google.ca/

61. Features of Google Scholar
 Search all scholarly
 Explore related works, citations, authors, and
publications
 Locate the complete document
 Keep up with recent developments in any
area of research
 Check who's citing your publications,
 create a public author profile

64. Narrowing Search

70. The Cochrane Library
http://www.thecochranelibrary.com/

77. UpToDate
 Summarizes information in all types
of resources
–Cochrane Reviews
–Other large studies
 Background information from textbooks
 Tells you what you can do best right now
–Grading / recommending
http://www.uptodate.com/home

80. embase
http://www.embase.com/

81. embase
Embase is most commonly used:
-To track drugs and devices in
market, in order to file safety reports;
- As a source for Evidence Based
Medicine (EBM) and systematic
reviews;
-To search and filter relevant
literature

83. Verifying References

87. Checking / Getting Complete
Reference
Landers JA et al. Microbial keratitis… 2006;
177

90. Answers To Clinical Queries
Pubmed clinical queries