being to which that procedure was applied." If a procedure involves pain or distress, the PI must search for an alternative and, also, consult with the attending veterinarian.
Listing terms to describe any potential alternatives you are aware of, such as in vitro, tissue culture, alternative procedures or alternative animal models, etc. is helpful in conducting the refinement alternative aspect of the search. It is also helpful in determining potential search terms to use, since these are terms outside the specific area of study.
Keywords, concepts and database selection determine the ultimate search strategy. These keywords are those that will likely be found in the title, abstract, and descriptor fields of the citation. Use as many synonyms as possible, such as "cardiac" and "heart." Include acronyms and complete spellings (i.e., "GH" and "growth hormone"). Also include all possible spellings of words. For example, "anesthesia," "anesthetic," and "anaesthesia." Include words that make the study different from other studies. This will help detect unintentional duplication as well as limit the scope of the search if the number of citations from a broader search is more than 200. All potential alternatives should be included as keywords, whether or not the researcher believes they will be useful. Using the keywords selected from your notes, put together brief strings of words so that each search set covers a separate concept. For example, the first set might include words relating to the experimental outcome, and the second set will contain words relating to the animal model. Short and simple search sentences are preferred. Considering reduction and refinement requires a search similar to the typical literature review done in preparation for a new project or scientific publication. Keywords used will help determine if there is unintentional duplication, how many animals are necessary using the proposed model, appropriate anesthetics and analgesics, and any other method of minimizing pain and distress. Since much of the refinement and reduction information will be found in the materials and methods sections, it is important for the researcher to review some of the articles that may be of interest.
Many people make the mistake of putting the term ";alternatives" in the strategy and expect to find all possible alternatives. Because alternatives is a complex concept involving refinement, reduction and replacement, this term is best used only in those areas of study where larger amounts of research have been conducted on alternatives, such as in toxicology or education. They might also end up with ";alternatives" that have nothing to do with the 3Rs.
Considering replacement requires a search that should include keywords for potential alternatives such as "vitro," "culture," or "simulation." The word "alternative" may also be included here. The selected animal model, other species, and the word "model" will help retrieve animal and non-animal models as potential alternatives.
Search strategies for research, teaching, or testing protocols differ. For example, a teaching protocol might include keywords such as "teach," "educate," or "instruct," while a testing protocol could include "safety," ";efficacy," or "test".
NOTE: It is very important to realize that stringing together keywords on one line (i.e., dogs or cats and cardiac or thoracic and stent or device and alternative) does not create a proper search strategy and results in a poor search with inaccurate results. Boolean operators and individual database vagaries require familiarity or professional librarian assistance.
The worksheet lists many of the most useful databases for biomedical research topics. Although there is some overlap in journals and other publications covered by the databases, each database is unique; each indexes a unique set of informational resources. Several of the core databases should be searched in order to conduct a comprehensive literature search. Keep in mind the type of protocol when choosing databases. An education protocol, for example, shoul