Not all authors use the same terms when they write. One author can refer to one concept by one word, while another uses another word. Having synonyms for your keywords will improve your results when you search the databases by not restricting yourself to one word
When you are searching the literature, think about differences in spellings and terminology, and incorporate alternatives into your search strategy.
For example:
Spelling Variations
Terminology
When you are searching the literature think about differences in spellings and terminology, and incorporate alternatives into your search strategy.
For example:
Spelling Variations
Terminology
Use subject-specific terminology or technical terms in addition to colloquial words.
Use these specialized terms in your search to improve your results. If you do not know the standard terminology, then the database subject index or thesaurus may help.
| Natural Language | Database Language |
|---|---|
| sudden OR severe | acute |
| iron deficiency | anaemia |
| skin | epidermis |
| heart attack | myocardial Infarction |
| kneecap | patella |
| Swelling | Edema |
| Bruise | Contusion |
If you are searching across long time periods, remember that terminology changes over time.
New words appear, others change meaning so be prepared to reflect this in your search strategy.
For example:
When researching unhoused people the following terms have been used:
Have acronyms or abbreviations been used in the sources you have read? These can be included in your search terms in order to findi matching results.
| Acronym | Abbreviation |
|---|---|
| AMA | Against Medical Advice |
| AIDS | Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome |
| ADHD | Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder |
| CAT Scan | Computerized Axial Tomography Scan |
| ECG/EKG | Electrocardiogram |
| ER | Emergency Room |
When searching try using both large umbrella terms and more specific terminology
| Umbrella Term | Specific Terminology |
|---|---|
|
Health Personnel |
Nurse, Medical Technician, Heath Care Assistant |
| LGBTQIA+ | lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender, queer, intersex, asexual |
| Heart Diseases | Atrial Fibrillation, Bradycardia, Tachycardia, Ventricular Fibrillation |
| Nurse | nurse practitioner, registered nurse |
| Sexually transmitted diseases | Syphilis, gonorrhea, herpes, chlamydia, etc. |
| Hospital | emergency room, intensive care, operating room |
Google and other search engines can be a good place to find alterative words for your key concepts.
There are two stragies:
Subject Headings in CINAHL are an effect method for finding resources. However, they do have a learning curve.
Take a look at the key concepts below for more explanations about alterative keywords.
Search terms that include names of medical conditions will rarely include alternative terms unless (see above for examples):
In this example, if "headaches" were added to the list of keywords, the search results would be too broad since we only want results about a specific type of headache - migraine.
For this term, we want to add more terms since researchers are probably going to refer to the specific treatment(s) they used rather than using the broad term "non-drug therapies" or "non-drug therapy."
To find alternative words, I did a Google search (we are using Google to find keywords, not sources). In my Google search, I came across lots of different types of therapies.
Look at the connecting your keywords together or special characters page or move to the page about initial searching..
