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Use EMTREE to Find Appropriate SearchTerms?
TOPIC: The advantage of using scientific literature databases on Dialog is that publishers of databases such as EMBASE® (File 73,72) hire medical specialists who assign terms and codes in accordance with the file’s classification system called EMTREE. EMTREE is a highly developed, hierarchically structured controlled vocabulary, consisting of more than 50,000 terms and nearly 210,000 synonyms.
The online equivalent to Excerpta Medica Abstract Journals, EMBASE is about the most current biomedical database available today, covering developing trends in gene therapy, biomedical engineering and instrumentation in addition to drug research, pharmacology, pharmacoeconomics, human medicine and toxicology.
Related databases with online thesauri include MEDLINE® (File 155), Inspec® (File 2) and Ei Compendex® (File 8) .
In this example, you will use EMTREE to find appropriate index terms to conduct the most comprehensive search on the use of angiogenesis inhibitors to treat ovarian cancer.
COMMAND SUMMARY
BEGIN 72
VISUAL EXPAND ANGIOGENESIS INHIBITOR
Check the appropriate term and click the Related button
Check the appropriate term and the check box for “Use EXPLODE in selection”
SELECT S1/MAJ,ENG,HUMAN
VISUAL EXPAND OVARIAN CANCER
Click the appropriate term and click the Related button
Check the appropriate term and the check box for “Use EXPLODE in selection”
SELECT S3/MAJ,HUMAN,ENG
DISPLAY SETS
SELECT S2 AND S4
SELECT S5/2007:2008
TYPE S6/8/1-2
Click Links at the top of a record > Display > Type Full Record
or: TYPE S6/9/2
HOW TO...
1. BEGIN File 72 to search EMBASE from 1993 to present.
2. VISUAL EXPAND a term as a word or phrase. Notice the second column, RT, indicates 65 related terms. The Items column shows the number of records that contain the word or phrase.
3. Check the box to the left of the appropriate term and click the Related button.
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The first 50 related terms appear. The third column, Type, identifies synonyms, broader and narrower terms. The narrower terms appear to be drug names, laboratory codes and chemical names (not shown here). You can select appropriate terms or just browse the list. Click More to see all 65 related terms in this case.
4. Check the box for the appropriate term; check the box on the bottom right side for “Use EXPLODE in selection” and click Select.
EXPLODE automatically selects the main term and all of its narrower (N) terms. |
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5. Use database LIMIT features to restrict results to major focus, human subjects, English language.
6. VISUAL EXPAND the next concept. There is one related term, but there are no records that contain this phrase. Notice the dearth of items for the terms below. Check the box next to the appropriate term and click Related.
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7. The letter U under the Type column means USE this term. Notice the number of records now with the EMTREE preferred term. Check the boxes for the preferred term and for “Use EXPLODE in selection,” and click Select.
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8. Use database LIMITS to restrict the exploded set to major focus, human subjects, English language.
9. DISPLAY SETS to review search history.
10. Combine Sets 2 and 4 (S2, S4) so that each record will contain both concepts limited to major focus, human subjects and English language.
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11. Use database LIMITS to restrict retrieval to a range of publication years. The colon acts as OR.
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12. TYPE records in Format 8 to browse titles, indexing and publication years.
Some records index manufacturers and brand names.
Note: Some records, as well as portions of some records, have been omitted from the display.
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13. Click Links at the top of the record of interest > Display > Type Full Record.
Alternatively you can TYPE S6/9/2-4,6 to display selected records in the full format.
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EMBASE provides the author’s contact information.
EMBASE also provides a Digital Object Identifier, which connects you to the journal publisher’s website where you may purchase the fulltext or obtain it if you have an electronic journal subscription.
Note: Part of this record is omitted from the display. |
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RELATED HOW DO I...? SOLUTIONS
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