Another contest from your friends at OSLER
Deidre Green
CMAJ 2000;162:251
When OSLER (Ovid Search: Link to Electronic Resources) users are stumped by the Ovid software, they send requests for help by clicking on Ask a CMA Librarian. Since more than 7000 CMA members are now registered with OSLER, traffic can be heavy at the support desk. The librarian performs a MEDLINE search on their behalf and sends it by email, along with the searching strategy illustrating retrieval methods. Reviewing the steps to retrieve useful results provides practical pointers for novice searchers — and might tempt readers to enter our Second OSLER Challenge.
Before starting a search, define the question as accurately as possible. Identify each concept embedded within the question, search for each one individually, then combine the results. A large retrieval can be narrowed later using the "Limits" icon in the Ovid toolbar. Many OSLER searchers run into problems when they type long phrases containing several topics into the Keyword Box. This approach prevents Ovid from carrying out the Mapping feature. Mapping provides the appropriate MeSH (medical subject heading) terms for precise retrieval. Besides searching with MeSH terms, consider textword searching, especially when looking for a trade name. Textwords may be designated by adding .mp. at the end of a word or phrase, for example lipitor.mp. will retrieve references containing the drug name in the title or abstract. Searching more broadly under anticholesteremic agents, a MeSH term, will produce references concerning many different drugs in this group.
Consider too the choice of database. To be fully comprehensive, don't limit the search to MEDLINE. Clinical topics are also covered in HealthSTAR, CancerLit and AIDSLINE. These databases search journals as well as monographs, theses and government reports. Selecting the "NonMEDLINE" filter avoids duplication.
Recently an OSLER user asked if there are studies indicating how much of a doctor's advice patients remember. My search strategy can be seen in the next column.
Placing an asterisk (*) in front of a MeSH heading, as I did with *Communication, limits results to those in which that subject is the central topic. The two sets of results were combined with the Boolean operator AND, then limited to English. A manageable number of current citations were found that addressed the topic fully.
Now for the OSLER Challenge !
The question: Is there any evidence that zinc lozenges shorten the duration and severity of the common cold in children?
To participate, you must be a CMA member and a registered OSLER user. Perform the search on the appropriate Ovid database and send the results, along with your strategy, to: cmalibrary@sympatico.ca before the deadline of Mar. 1, 2000. Remember: it is the strategy that will decide the winner! Please include your name, address and phone number so we can notify the winning searcher. A superb prize awaits you, as well as the glory of being the first OSLER winner of the new millennium. Not yet an OSLER registrant? Call 800 663-7336, x2255 for information.
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