More PubMed What are these? * MESH searching * Clinical trials Specialized Interfaces * PubMed Health * PubMed Central * NCBI Bookshelf

1. Session Three – Exploring
PubMed, Part 2

2. What is MeSH?
MeSH (Medical Subject
Headings) is the NLM’s
controlled vocabulary thesaurus
used for indexing articles
citations in PubMed.
Subject terms can be browsed
from
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/
meshhome.html

3. MeSH Searching
You can begin a
search of the MeSH
database by
selecting the link
from PubMed’s
webpage.

4. Familiar Interface
You will see a
familiar search
screen similar to
most NLM
databases.
Enter your term in to
the search box and
press the Search
button.

5. Entering Search Terms
When entering a term
into the search box a
selection of suggested
terms will appear in the
dropdown menu.
Select the one you wish
to use or press the
Search button to start
your search.

6. MeSH Search Results
The search results
displayed subject
headings related to
“headache.”
Searched terms are
displayed in the
“Search details” box.

7. MeSH Term Display
Once you have
selected a term from
the results list a
definition (or scope
note) of the subject
displays. This provides
a brief discussion on
use of the world within
the MeSH database.
Below the note are
Subheadings related
to the term.

8. Indexing Tree
Bottom of the page reveals
an index tree revealing the
hierarchical structure of
the subject heading within
MeSH.
MeSH terms are arranged
hierarchically by subject
categories with more
specific (narrower) terms
arranged beneath broader
terms. PubMed
automatically explodes
searches to include all
Select an item narrower terms.
to see the terms’
definition and
indexing tree.

9. MeSH Term Display - One Level Up
By selecting the subject
heading higher on the
tree, you have
expanded the possible
search parameters.

10. Select a subheading to then
select “Add to search
builder.”
Select “Search PubMed” to
see the results.
Add Terms to Search Builder

11. First Results Set
Results from MeSH search.

12. Add Terms from History
Combine MeSH searches
from History.

13. Second Results Set
Combined terms reduce
results, refines the search.

14. Clinical Trials
Work that is the report of a pre-planned clinical study of the safety, efficacy,
or optimum dosage schedule of one or more diagnostic, therapeutic, or
prophylactic drugs, devices, or techniques in humans selected according to
predetermined criteria of eligibility and observed for predefined evidence of
favorable and unfavorable effects. While most clinical trials concern humans,
this publication type may be used for clinical veterinary articles meeting the
requisites for humans. Specific headings for specific types and phases of
clinical trials are also available.
(MeSH Database)

15. Use the Filters
We are searching for
Article information about
distance education and
nursing.

16. Different Phases
•Phase I (Publication Type)
Work that is the report of a pre-planned, usually controlled, clinical study of the safety and efficacy of
diagnostic, therapeutic, or prophylactic drugs, devices, or techniques based on a small number of healthy
persons and conducted over the period of about a year in either the United States or a foreign country.
(MeSH Database)
•Phase II (Publication Type)
These studies are performed on several hundred volunteers, including a limited number of patients with the
target disease or disorder, and last about two years.
(MeSH Database)
•Phase III (Publication Type)
These studies are performed on groups of patients large enough to identify clinically significant responses and
usually last about three years.
(MeSH Database)
•Phase IV (Publication Type)
Work that is a report of a planned post-marketing study of diagnostic, therapeutic, or prophylactic
drugs, devices, or techniques that have been approved for general sale after clinical trials, phases I,
II, and III. These studies, conducted in the United States or a foreign country, often garner additional
data about the safety and efficacy of a product.
(MeSH Database)

17. The Other Database
ClinicalTrials.gov is a Web-based
resource that provides
patients, their family members,
health care professionals,
researchers, and the public
with easy access to information
on publicly and privately
supported clinical studies on a
wide range of diseases and
conditions.

18. Evidence Based Practice
A way of providing health care that is guided by a thoughtful integration of
the best available scientific knowledge with clinical expertise. This approach
allows the practitioner to critically assess research data, clinical guidelines,
and other information resources in order to correctly identify the clinical
problem, apply the most high-quality intervention, and re-evaluate the
outcome for future improvement.
(MeSH Database)

19. Results for EBP
Searching for articles using
MESH headings “Evidence-
Based Nursing” and
“Myocardial Infarction”

20. PubMed Health
Search for things that work!

21. What is PubMed Health?
• PubMed Health provides information for consumers and clinicians on prevention and
treatment of diseases and conditions.
• PubMed Health specializes in reviews of clinical effectiveness research, with easy-to-read
summaries for consumers as well as full technical reports. Clinical effectiveness
research finds answers to the question “What works?” in medical and health care.
• PubMed Health is based on systematic reviews of clinical trials. These clinical
effectiveness reviews can show what treatments and prevention methods have been
proven to work—and what remains unknown.
• PubMed Health provides summaries and full texts of selected systematic reviews in
one place. The reviews were generally published or updated from 2003. There is also
information for consumers and clinicians based on those reviews.

22. What are the Resources?
A search on PubMed Health runs simultaneously in PubMed. A filter is used to identify all the
indexed scientific articles at the NLM that might be systematic reviews. This search includes
articles from before 2003.
Information partners selected by PubMed Health to contribute their clinical effectiveness
information are:
– Agency for Health Care Research and Quality (US) (AHRQ)
– Centre for Reviews and Dissemination (CRD)
– The Cochrane Collaboration (CC)
– German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG)
– National Cancer Institute (NCI)
– National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines program (NICE)
– National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Technology Assessment Programme (NIHR
HTA)
– Oregon Health and Science University's Drug Effectiveness Review Project (DERP)
– Department of Veterans Affairs' Evidence-based Synthesis Program from the Veterans Health
Administration R&D (VA ESP)

23. What is a Systematic Review?
Definition: A summary of the clinical literature. A systematic review is a critical assessment and
evaluation of all research studies that address a particular clinical issue. The researchers use an
organized method of locating, assembling, and evaluating a body of literature on a particular
topic using a set of specific criteria. A systematic review typically includes a description of the
findings of the collection of research studies. The systematic review may also include a
quantitative pooling of data, called a meta-analysis.
Example: Scientists collected all the published studies that compared types of treatment for
prostate cancer that had not spread beyond the prostate gland. They compiled the results of
these studies in a comparative effectiveness review, which is a type of systematic review.
(text from AHRQ)

24. Results of a Search

25. Quality of the Resources
Resources from which
the information is
drawn, includes
Systematic Reviews
from PubMed.

26. More to Learn!
Helpful resources provide
insight into the materials
provided through PubMed
Health.

27. PubMed Central
There are millions of “open
access” articles in the PMC
database.

28. Browse Titles
Enter journal title and press
search. If searching for all
issues of a journal,
including journal title
changes, select “Show
predecessor titles.”

29. Search for a Journal Title
Here the search was
conducted for the Journal
of the Medical Library
Association.
Select the title provides a
listing of all currently
available volumes and
issues.

30. Full text Articles
Select a volume and open
an article.

31. NCBI Bookshelf
A collection of e-books in a
variety formats.
•Acrobat (.pdf)
•HTML
•Searchable HTML

32. Browse the Titles
Browse through the title.
Select the one to view the
text of the book.

33. Searchable Only
Some books are only
searchable.
Search terms are
highlighted in chapters and
pages of the book.

34. Search Text within a Book
Text within books is
searchable.
Search terms are
highlighted in chapters and
pages of the book.

35. What’s next?
In the next session we will discuss:
– Daily Med
– Drug Information Portal
– MedlinePlus
– Images from the History of Medicine
– International Resources