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PharmD Year 2 - Library Resources

PubMed Search Examples

Problem and Intervention (and Study Type).  Use filters such as Article Type to limit your resultst to specific focus categories.
rheumatoid arthritis AND tofacitinib 498
rheumatoid arthritis AND tofacitinib      Filters: Randomized Controlled Trial 46
rheumatoid arthritis AND tofacitinib AND (cohort study OR case control study) 31

Note: "Cohort Study" and "Case Control Study" are not included in the list of Article Types.  Search for them as key words.

Use the boolean operator 'OR' to add terms that could be included in the search results.
Use the boolean operator 'AND' to add terms that must be included in the search results.
When combining phrases with AND and OR, enclose the OR terms in parentheses so the OR search is executed by itself before being included in the rest of the search.

 

(Problem and) Intervention and Outcome.  Use MeSH (Medical Subject Heading) terms and subheadings to refine your search.
tofacitinib AND safety 286
"Janus Kinase Inhibitors/adverse effects"[Mesh] 58
"Janus Kinase Inhibitors/adverse effects"[Mesh] AND tofacitinib 28
Example of searching for more popular topics:  
methotrexate AND rheumatoid arthritis 8956
"Methotrexate/adverse effects"[Mesh] AND "arthritis, rheumatoid"[Mesh] 1775
"Methotrexate/adverse effects"[Mesh] AND "arthritis, rheumatoid"[Mesh] AND ("cohort studies"[Mesh] OR "case-control studies"[Mesh]) 357

Note: Methotrexate, an older drug, is itself a MeSH term, so you can attach a subheading to specifically capture articles on adverse effects of methotrexate.  Tofacitinib is not a MeSH term, but you can search for adverse effects of janus kinase inhibitors, the class of molecules it belongs to.

Note: Cohort studies and case-control studies are actually MeSH terms, not Article Types.