Background: In 1991, a field called Publication Types was created in the MEDLINE database to distinguish the literature it contains and to accommodate identification of the type of information each article offers and the manner by which the information is transmitted.
Purpose: This article explains the terminology used for Publication Type and quantitatively analyzes the literature indexed under each type.
Method: The Publication Types were sorted into 5 general classes. For a quantitative analysis of the literature by publication types, the target was set on 1998 and a search was conducted retrospectively to 1966 to examine the changes in retrievals.
Results: At the moment, the MeSH lists 120 Publication Type terms, among which 47 are currently in use by MEDLINE. They are: 22 for literature types, 5 for ethics in publishing; 4 for meeting reports; 6 for review literature; and 10 for clinical trials and research designs. Approximately 90% of the literature contained in MEDLINE was labeled as Journal-Articles. The literature on RCT (Randomized-Controlled Trial) numbered approximately 10, 000 annually.
Conclusion: Among the terms used for Publication Types, valuable descriptors, such as RCT to identify the literature related to EBM and Practice-Guideline to search highly reliable clinical information, were found. It is believed that medical librarians are obliged to actively inform users about the effective use of the Publication Types, a field that is highly valuable in search.
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