Ovid basics: title search
2004 version 2
24 May 2004
You remember that Anne Ponsonby wrote an article that had something to do with trend or trends in the title.
1. Click the icon on the Main Search page;
2. You will be asked to "Enter a word or phrase to be searched in the title:"
3. Type trend$ in the search box and click
Figure 7: Title search
It important to remember that the system will do this quite literally - exactly the string of characters that you type - so you must use the truncation symbol $ (more in the truncation section) if you are not quite sure of the wording. In this case you are asking it to look for the word trend or trends (or any other word beginning with trend) anywhere in the title - not necessarily at the beginning.
Figure 8: Search history resulting from an additional title search for trends
A title search can also be useful on occasions when for example, there is no appropriate subject term, or where you wish to search for a proper name or brand name, eg glaxo. It is also a technique for increasing the relevance of your search.
Any questions? Please contact the MEDLINE Plus help desk:
Tel: 020 7383 6224 or 6737
email: info.medline@bma.org.uk
web: http://www.bma.org.uk/medline