Electronic Production Department

Content Quality Management

EMBASE
Indexing Manual
TABLE OF CONTENTS
How to use this manual................................................................................................................................1
1

Description of EMBASE......................................................................................................................2
1.1 General description...............................................................................................................2
1.2 Scope of EMBASE...............................................................................................................2
1.2.1 Journal coverage....................................................................................................2
1.3 Items 3

Emtree (the EMBASE thesaurus).........................................................................................................4

2.1 Introduction to Emtree..........................................................................................................4
2.2 Role of Emtree......................................................................................................................4
2.3 Structure of Emtree...............................................................................................................4

Content Quality Management

Operations - Content Enrichment Center

January 2015
Version 2.1

Elsevier
2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. For internal use only.
2.4

Spelling of Emtree terms......................................................................................................5

2
2.4.1
2.4.2

General rules..........................................................................................................5
Drug terms.............................................................................................................5

Principles of EMBASE indexing.........................................................................................................6

3.1 Introduction..........................................................................................................................6
3.2 Purpose of indexing..............................................................................................................6
3.3 What is good indexing?........................................................................................................6
3.4 Item analysis and concept identification...............................................................................6
3.5 Concept translation into Emtree terms..................................................................................7
3.5.1 Specificity of indexing...........................................................................................7
3.5.2 Overlapping terms.................................................................................................7
3.6 Indexing major and minor terms...........................................................................................7
3.6.1 Major concepts......................................................................................................7
3.6.2 Minor concepts......................................................................................................8
3.6.3 Irrelevant concepts.................................................................................................8
3.7 What to index: Original items...............................................................................................8
3.8 What to index: Non-original (review) items.........................................................................8
3.9 What to index: Items specified by the authors as a combination of an original report and a
non-original item.............................................................................................................................8
3.9.1 Original part:.........................................................................................................8
3.9.2 Non-original part:..................................................................................................8
3.10 Indexing: What not to do......................................................................................................8
3.11 Checklist for indexing...........................................................................................................9

Medical indexing...............................................................................................................................10
4.1 Introduction........................................................................................................................10
4.2 Medical index terms............................................................................................................10
4.3 Indexing long lists of named entities...................................................................................10
4.4 Medical candidate terms.....................................................................................................10
4.4.1 Emtree rules for candidate terms..........................................................................11
4.5 Disease links.......................................................................................................................12
4.5.1 Original studies....................................................................................................12
4.5.2 Non-original studies............................................................................................12
4.5.3 Indexing disease links..........................................................................................12
4.6 Check tags...........................................................................................................................15
4.6.1 Indexing of check tags.........................................................................................15
4.6.2 Non-original studies............................................................................................15
4.6.3 Check tags for organism studied..........................................................................15
4.6.4 Check tag for controlled studies..........................................................................15
4.6.5 Check tags for animal study types and human study types (general)...................16
4.6.5.1 In vivo studies (original reports)...........................................................16
4.6.5.2 In vitro studies (original reports)..........................................................16
4.6.6 Check tags for specific study types......................................................................17
4.6.7 Check tag for diagnostic test accuracy studies.....................................................18
4.6.8 Check tags for study procedures..........................................................................19
4.6.9 Check tags for sex and age..................................................................................19
4.6.9.1 Male/female..........................................................................................19
4.6.9.2 Age category........................................................................................19

Drug indexing....................................................................................................................................22
5.1 Drug index term..................................................................................................................22
5.2 Drug definition....................................................................................................................22
5.3 Drug item............................................................................................................................22
5.4 Indexing drug items............................................................................................................23
5.5 Drug indexing for original drug items.................................................................................24
5.5.1 Main drug concepts (major concepts)..................................................................24
5.5.2 Drug candidate terms...........................................................................................24
5.5.3 Additional drugs to cover main concepts.............................................................25
5.5.4 Drug group names...............................................................................................25

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5.5.5
5.5.6
5.5.7
5.5.8
5.5.10

5.6
5.7
5.8

Combination preparations....................................................................................25
Many similar drugs..............................................................................................26
Other drugs..........................................................................................................26
Chemicals, endogenous compounds or toxic substances.....................................26
Triple links...........................................................................................................26
5.5.10.1 Drug therapy.........................................................................................27
5.5.10.2 Adverse drug reaction...........................................................................29
5.5.10.3 Drug combination.................................................................................32
5.5.10.4 Drug comparison..................................................................................32
5.5.10.5 Drug interaction....................................................................................33
5.5.10.6 Route of drug administration................................................................33
5.5.10.7 Drug dosage information......................................................................35
5.5.11 Dosage schedule terms........................................................................................38
5.5.12 Drug links............................................................................................................39
5.5.12.1 Drug links for chemicals, endogenous compounds or toxic substances 40
5.5.14 Specific drug-related index terms........................................................................41
Drug indexing for non-original items..................................................................................41
5.6.1 Drug related information.....................................................................................41
Drug trade names & drug manufacturer names...................................................................41
Indexing an item which is not a drug item..........................................................................42

Medical device indexing....................................................................................................................43

6.1 Medical device index term..................................................................................................43
6.2 Medical device definition...................................................................................................43
6.3 Medical device item............................................................................................................43
6.4 Indexing medical device items............................................................................................43
6.4.1 Medical device links (subheadings).....................................................................44
6.4.2 Adverse device effect (medical device complication)..........................................44
6.4.3 Device comparison (medical device comparison)................................................45
6.4.4 Other device links (subheadings).........................................................................45
6.4.5 Medical device trade names and manufacturer names (including country codes) 47

Indexing of special items and topics..................................................................................................48

7.1 Indexing policy for non-English items................................................................................48
7.2 Indexing of errata................................................................................................................48
7.3 Clinical trial numbers..........................................................................................................48
7.3.1 General information.............................................................................................48
7.3.2 Indexing clinical trial numbers............................................................................49
7.4 Gene therapy.......................................................................................................................49
7.4.1 Section assignment..............................................................................................50
7.5 Molecular sequence number indexing.................................................................................51
7.5.1 Repositories.........................................................................................................51
7.5.2 Molecular sequence number format.....................................................................51
7.5.3 Indexing molecular sequence numbers................................................................52
7.5.4 Ranges limits to the number of molecular sequence numbers...........................52
7.5.4.1 Where to find molecular sequence numbers.........................................52
7.5.4.2 Pitfalls..................................................................................................53

Section assignment and classification guidelines...............................................................................54

8.1 Section assignment.............................................................................................................54
8.2 Publication choice and section classification......................................................................55
8.2.1 Section classification...........................................................................................56
8.2.2 Publication choice................................................................................................56
8.2.3 Section classification guidelines..........................................................................56
8.2.3.1 General guideline.................................................................................57
8.2.3.2 Specific guideline.................................................................................57

APPENDICES.................................................................................................................................104
Appendix A Glossary of terms....................................................................................................105
Appendix B ISO country codes...................................................................................................107

EMBASE Indexing Manual

Appendix C Notes on chemical nomenclature............................................................................109

Appendix D EMBASE indexing consistency checks..................................................................115