title: Finding current evidence: search strategies and common databases.
abstract: With more than 100 orthopaedic, sports medicine, or hand surgery journals indexed in MEDLINE, it is no longer possible to keep abreast of developments in orthopaedic surgery by reading a few journals each month. Electronic resources are easier to search and more current than most print sources. We provide a practical approach to finding useful information to guide orthopaedic practice. We focus first on where to find the information by providing details about many useful databases and web links. Sources for identifying guidelines, systematic reviews, and randomized controlled trials are identified. The second section discusses how to find the information, from the first stage of formulating a question and identifying the concepts of interest, through to writing a simple strategy. Sources for additional self-directed learning are provided.
authors.affiliation: Cochrane Musculoskeletal Injuries Group, Department of Health Sciences, Area Four, Seebohm Rowntree Building, The University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5DD, UK. Ldg2@york.ac.uk
authors.forename: Lesley Diane
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Gillespie
authors.forename: William John
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Gillespie
mesh_terms: D016206:Databases, Bibliographic / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006801:Humans; D016239:MEDLINE; D009985:Orthopedics; D012196:Review Literature as Topic