Systematic Review Meta-Analysis Course - Search Assignment

Use the MeSH Database and Your Yale MeSH Analyzer Results

1. Go to the MeSH Database.
2. Search for relevant terms listed in the MeSH Headings section of your Yale MeSH Analyzer Excel file.
3. Go to each term's record in the MeSH Database and add the term to the PubMed Search Builder. Paste the resulting formatted MeSH term into your Word document under the appropriate search concept.

Note: The MeSH Database is also linked from the PubMed homepage.

Note: Just use the main MeSH term, not the subheading (identified with a slash). For example, if the term is listed as "Biomarkers / metabolism," just search MeSH with the word "biomarkers."

Look for Additional MeSH Terms Relevant to Your Search Concepts

The MeSH terms assigned to your included studies may not be the only relevant ones for your PubMed search. You should therefore search MeSH using terms related to each of your search concepts to see what else you find.

Add relevant MeSH terms to the PubMed Search Builder and paste them into your search document as noted above.

For example, "Intensive Care Units, Neonatal"[Mesh] might be a MeSH term assigned to one of your included studies. By searching the MeSH Database with the term "neonatal intensive care," you can also find the relevant MeSH term "Intensive Care, Neonatal"[Mesh].

Note: If you retrieve no results when searching, check your spelling, or try searching for a synonym or a related term.

Use MeSH Terms and Entry Terms as Sources for Keywords

Always include MeSH terms as keywords. For instance, if you are using "Hand Disinfection"[Mesh] in your search, you should also use "Hand Disinfection" as a keyword.

Review the "Entry Terms" section of each relevant MeSH record. Entry terms are synonyms, alternate forms, and other closely related terms that are generally used interchangeably with the preferred term. Entry terms are a good source of keywords for your search strategy.

Note: MeSH terms and Entry terms sometimes have a "Last Name, First Name" format (e.g., "Care, Neonatal Intensive"). This format should be inverted when using the term as a keyword (e.g., use "Neonatal Intensive Care" instead).

Consider Using Pharmacological Action Terms for Searches Involving Drugs

Pharmacological Action is a type of record in the MeSH Database that acts as an umbrella term for finding drugs with a particular effect (e.g., selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors).

If your research question involves a drug, you might consider adding any or all of the following to your search:

• Pharmacological Action terms (like MeSH terms, these should be formatted with the PubMed Search Builder)
• MeSH terms of selected drugs of interest (these are listed in Pharmacological Action records)
• "Entry Terms" from relevant MeSH terms (these should be added as keywords)

Note: Searching with a Pharmacological Action term in PubMed finds all articles that searching with all of the MeSH terms listed in the Pharmacological Action record will find, plus more. However, while Pharmacological Action terms encompass all related MeSH terms, they don't encompass related "Entry Terms." These have to be added as keywords.

Below is a screenshot of a Pharmacological Action record in the MeSH Database showing the formatted term in the PubMed Search Builder and a list of encompassed MeSH terms.

Use the following resources to identify additional terms.

Dictionaries, Thesauri, and English Language Conventions

These will help you identify common terminology, synonyms, related terms, spelling variations (British vs. American), plurals, etc.

Other Controlled Vocabularies

Consult controlled vocabularies in other subject databases. For example, Embase has a controlled vocabulary called Emtree. Emtree records contain synonym lists similar to the "Entry Terms" in a MeSH record. The Emtree synonym list often contains European spellings/variations.