literature review software?

[Mohd]

I'm working on a review article, I have done an extensive literature review of multiple databases (Pubmed, CINAHL, etc.) and ended up with 300+ articles . . . now after reading some of the articles I found new keywords, the problem is if I am to re-do my lit review its going to take too long and I'm going to have to go through all the articles that I already have.

So my questions is: is there a software that searches multiple databases while highlighting (or even subtracting) the articles that I already have?

Thanks!

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[phantomx87]

I'm working on a review article, I have done an extensive literature review of multiple databases (Pubmed, CINAHL, etc.) and ended up with 300+ articles . . . now after reading some of the articles I found new keywords, the problem is if I am to re-do my lit review its going to take too long and I'm going to have to go through all the articles that I already have.

So my questions is: is there a software that searches multiple databases while highlighting (or even subtracting) the articles that I already have?

Thanks!

Do you have a Mac (or a bootleg version of OS10.X)? If so, give Papers a shot. I use it pretty frequently (and got one of my old PIs to use it too). Basically, it's a central app that allows you to run searches using multiple databases (I think the default list is ~17, including Pubmed, Google scholar, etc). You can tailor your search parameters pretty specifically.

The main reason I started using it is its cataloging capabilities. Using metadata in the PDFs, it sorts all the articles according to journal, pub year, author, etc, and it also stores all of the articles in one central location (subfolders are broken down into year.

One bad thing I will say about the cataloging performance is that (at least on the older version I have) it can be a bit spotty in reading the metadata. Not sure if this is one the app's side or faulty coding of the PDF. In either case, it's easy enough to sort everything out (click and drag adding of authors, etc).

I'm actually going to go back and look it over again tonight (haven't played with it in a while). Let me know if you have any specific questions, and I'll see what I can dig up.

 

[phantomx87]

If it's on PC, sorry for the irrelevant advice. I haven't got a clue about anything like Papers on the Windows side (sorry!)...

 

[Mohd]

Thanks! I really appreciate the detailed reply,

Well, I'm stuck with a PC and I just looked it up: Papers do not intend to release a PC version.

I can borrow a Mac for a couple of days, so I will be very specific:

I have a refworks database with the 300+ articles I have; now if I were to import these articles into Papers will it omit them from the search results? i.e. I won't have to go through the same articles again?

Thanks again,

 

[PHARMDhope2b]

If you keep a record of your searches and look at them under the limits or modify search section in pubmed, you can use the "not" funtion to not duplicate articles that you have seen before.

For example:
1. you MeSh for "pain" (search #1) (250)
2. you mesh for "neuropathic pain" (search #3)
3. you text word "analgesics" (search #6)
4. if you do a search for all of this, pubmed will call it lets say (search #12)
5. if you find that search 1,3,6 give you 500 articles and search 12 gives you 300.
6. if you find that the articles in search 1 is too broad or gives you articles that are duplicated in the other searches, you can select search #12 and "not" #1, and you would end up with 50 articles. The 50 that you dont want from search #1

I'm working on a review article, I have done an extensive literature review of multiple databases (Pubmed, CINAHL, etc.) and ended up with 300+ articles . . . now after reading some of the articles I found new keywords, the problem is if I am to re-do my lit review its going to take too long and I'm going to have to go through all the articles that I already have.

So my questions is: is there a software that searches multiple databases while highlighting (or even subtracting) the articles that I already have?

Thanks!

 

[phantomx87]

Not a problem... I'll continue posting here instead of PMing (in case someone else wants to know about it).

Anyway, here's what I've got... It's been a REALLY long time since I've played with this, so I just updated to the newest version. Anyway, with regards to the metadata: Instead of having to manually enter missing information, there's a "Match" button that will search an online repository of your choosing (like PubMed). Once a match has been found (using the DOI embedded in the PDF or by selecting the title or authors), you can authorize the app to fill in the missing data.

Second, re: differentiating between papers you have and search results - Once you've matched your papers (again, doesn't take too long), go ahead and run your searches. When your results populate the search screen, you'll see the ones you already have are marked with a little check next to the author name. I just tried this with a bunch of my retrospective NIHSS papers, and it definitely worked.

One last note (at least for now): The app comes with links to all the tutorial videos (short and sweet, thankfully), so it's easy enough to figure it out.

Hope this helps!

 

[Mohd]

PharmD . . . I'm not sure if I got your explanation right, but this way I will exclude entire Mesh terms rather than the articles I already have.

Phantom . . . thanks, that answers my question! All I have to do now is find a friend who is welling to lend me his/her mac!

 

[phantomx87]

NP... Let me know how everything turns out! Good luck!

 

[ajnine]

If you use EndNote, you can mange your reference and PDF files however it takes intensive effort to manage all. Google Desktop might be something that you want to try. One nice PDF search program is PrepLit that should work for you. It will subtract your PDF articles in any length of search result with the multiple keyword search option that allowing you to define the distance among keywords to retrieve the meaningful search result. You can manage search results (edit, delete, rank) and PDF files with a few clicks. You can add your own note into the search result as well.

 

[Corenellien]

Thanks , iam starting a research and I think that this will be a useful tool ! Trying it now ! .