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
http://www.ais.up.ac.za/med/med.htm
– 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 focus
Click in this box
to explode
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
Set no 1 – result of
search
Next topic
Each new term will take you through the
searching process again
BOOLEAN LOGIC
AND / OR / NOT

OR
HEART DISEASES
HYPERTENSION
BOOLEAN LOGIC

AND
HEART
AND
DISEASES
HYPER
TENSION
BOOLEAN LOGIC

NOT
Not
CONGENITAL
HEART
DISEASES
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 1966.
– 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)
Click here for
additional limits
General 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 e-mailing 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:
www.ais.up.ac.za/med/med.htm
You will find a link:
10 Ways to improve your Medline
search
FEEL WELCOME TO ASK
FOR HELP
Created by Myleen Oosthuizen June 2005