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CSD 481: Clinical Policies and Procedures

PubMED link

PubMED Publication Types

Publication Characteristics (Publication Types) with Scope Notes
Best Bet! Limit to Clinical Study or Clinical Trial 

Clinical Study 

  A work that reports on the results of a research study to evaluate interventions or exposures on biomedical or health-related outcomes.  The two main types of clinical studies are interventional studies (clinical trials) and observational studies. While most clinical studies concern humans, this publication type may be used for clinical veterinary articles meeting the requisites for humans.

Clinical Trial 

A work that reports on the results of a clinical study in which participants are assigned to receive one or more interventions so that researchers can evaluate the interventions on biomedical or health-related outcomes. The assignments are determined by the study protocol. Participants may receive diagnostic, therapeutic, or other types of interventions. For clinical trials on  veterinary animals see CLINICAL TRIAL, VETERINARY. Clinical Trials was used for both humans and non-humans prior to 2019.

Using PubMed in Evidence-Based Practice

PubMed Clinical Queries 
Specialized PubMed searches designed to connect clinicians to evidence-based literature. Can search for systematic reviews OR by 5 clinical study areas: Etiology (causation), Diagnosis, Prognosis, Clinical prediction guidelines, and Therapy. 

This tutorial on Using PubMed in Evidence-Based Practice will guide you through steps in making effective use of this search tool for EBP!