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MEDLINE Guide

A guide to accessing and using MEDLINE through Ovid, ProQuest, and PubMed.

MEDLINE via ProQuest: Instructions & Examples

  1. By default, the FIU link to MEDLINE via ProQuest will take you to the advanced search page. For basic searches, click on the "Basic Search" link located below the database name on the start page.
  2. Type your keyword(s) in the text box. A drop-down list of suggested terms and phrases will appear. If one of the terms or phrases matches your topic, click on it to run the search. Otherwise, click the magnifying glass icon or press "Enter" on your keyboard to run the search using your original keyword(s).
  3. The terms you searched will be highlighted in yellow on your search results screen. You can narrow your results from the search results screen using the options on the left-hand column. Click on the plus signs to view all options available in that category.
  4. From the search results screen you can also: (1) see related searches, (2) cite, email, or print your results using the corresponding links above the search results, (3) access full text by clicking on the "Find It @ FIU" icons, and (4) much more.

Note: YouTube tutorial applies to all ProQuest databases and is not specific to MEDLINE.

  1. By default, the FIU link to MEDLINE via ProQuest will take you to the advanced search page.
  2. Enter your search term(s) in the text box(es). As you type, a drop-down list of suggested terms and phrases will appear. If one of the terms or phrases matches your topic, click on it to add it to your search. Add MeSH terms to your search by clicking on the thesaurus link above the search boxes. You can combine the terms with Boolean operators any way you like and/or use the drop-down menus at the right of each text box to specify where the database should search for the term(s) (set to "anywhere" by default).
  3. Scroll down to view the search options, which you can use to limit the results by document type, language, age group, and more. When you have selected the options you want, click the teal "Search" button (see image above) to run the search.
  4. The terms you searched will appear highlighted in yellow on your search results screen. You can narrow your results from the search results screen using the options on the left-hand column. Click on the plus signs to view all options available in that category.
  5. From the search results screen you can also: (1) see related searches, (2) cite, email, or print your results using the corresponding links above the search results, (3) access full text by clicking on the "Find It @ FIU" icons, and (4) much more.

Note: YouTube tutorial applies to all ProQuest databases and is not specific to MEDLINE.

  1. From your search results page, check the box(es) corresponding to the citation(s) you want to export to RefWorks.
  2. Click on the "More" link above the search results, then click on the RefWorks link.
  3. Change the options on the Export/Save box that appears according to your preferences (optional), then click "Continue."
  4. You will be prompted to log in to RefWorks if you have not already done so. Once you are logged in, the citations will be exported to RefWorks automatically.

Note: YouTube tutorial applies to all databases with a direct export function and is not specific to MEDLINE. (Old ProQuest interface is shown in video. Updated tutorial coming soon! See images above for new ProQuest interface.)