PRISMA 2020: Updated Systematic Review Reporting Guideline

PRISMA, the well-known guideline for reporting a systematic review (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses), has recently been updated. The original document was published in 2009 with the intent of helping researchers transparently describe methods used to find, select, critically appraise, and synthesize the findings of individual research studies. PRISMA Endorsers include nearly 200 journals that have formally endorsed the use of PRISMA 2009, and an evaluation of the endorsement has been shown to be associated with improvements in reporting quality.

The PRISMA 2020 Statement is now freely available from PLOS Medicine and has also been published in several other journals. The 2020 Statement provides a brief history of the development of PRISMA guidelines to date and, like its predecessor, contains a checklist and flow diagram. A second article, the PRISMA 2020 Explanation and Elaboration document, provides detailed rationales for the inclusion of each item in the PRISMA checklist, as well as real-world examples of reported items. Continue reading

Important Changes Coming Soon to the Way You Log in to NCBI Accounts

Did you know that your PubMed searches and auto alerts are saved in My NCBI through an NCBI account? You may also be using your NCBI account to access SciENcv and My Bibliography. Significant changes are coming very soon to NCBI accounts. After June 1, 2021, you will no longer be able to use your NCBI account to log in and no new NCBI direct logins can be created. Why the changes? NCBI is transitioning to third-party logins that have the highest level of security.

What are your options?

If you are affiliated with Pitt and currently have an NCBI account, you can continue to use your account, but you’ll need to add Pitt as your third-party login. Here are the step-by-step instructions: Continue reading

Creating Accessible Panopto Videos

To comply with Pitt’s new EIT Accessibility Policy, HSLS strives to create digital instructional materials that are accessible to all users. As part of this effort, HSLS instructors have adapted their methods when teaching via Zoom to ensure that all virtual learners can attend and participate in live HSLS classes. HSLS has also made accessibility improvements to recorded instructional videos hosted on Panopto (also known as Pitt Video/Lecture Capture). If you create and share Panopto videos, try implementing the following practices used by HSLS to create a more inclusive learning environment:

  • Ensure the video is properly captioned. Closed captions make your video accessible to the hearing-impaired community and can also improve the viewing experience for all users.
  • Any PDFs that you include in your video stream should be formatted as fully accessible files. You should also verbally introduce the PDF so that visually impaired users know that the file is available.

Continue reading

One-Click Access to PDF from PittCat

The new version of PittCat is a collaboration between HSLS, the University Library System, and Barco Law Library.

PittCat search results for individual articles now include links to offer quick access to popular ways to access articles.

PittCat users can click links below an article of interest to download article PDF, view issue contents, or read online.
Article titled, “Clinical and virological data of the first cases of COVID-19 in Europe: a case series,” as viewed after searching in PittCat.

Below the article citation, you may see a link to directly download article PDFs (“Download Article PDF”), when available, or directly access the HTML article (“Read Article”). Continue reading

COVID-19 Vaccine Forums

The Annals of Internal Medicine has produced a series of on-demand Vaccine Forums:

  • Forum 1: “What Physicians and Health Care Professionals Need to Know”—The Science, The Approval Process, The Development of Clinical Guidance, The Political and Public Policy Environment.
  • Forum 2: “Promoting COVID-19 Vaccination”—Effective communication strategies for promoting COVID-19 vaccination confidence and uptake and combating misinformation.
  • Forum 3: “Allocation and Distribution”—Practical information and unique insights and strategies about the allocation and distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine.
  • Forum 4: “Practical Clinical Considerations”—Infectious disease experts discuss the impact of COVID-19 variants on vaccine efficacy, comparative effectiveness of the different vaccines, and post-vaccine behavior recommendations.

Annals also makes available a free collection of COVID-19 content.

*Article derived from Doody’s Core Titles/Doody’s Review Service email communication.

Treasures from the Rare Book Room: Strong Together—Delpeuch’s History of Gout

Leather bound book titled La goutte & le rheumatism

The first edition of La goutte & le rheumatism (Paris 1900) at Falk Library is a lovely copy in a very attractive leather binding. Its author, Armand Delpeuch (1856-1901) was a physician at the Tenon and Cochin Hospital in Paris. In 1900, he published an article in La Presse Medicale, describing a new sign of aortic insufficiency, a rhythmic bobbing of the head synchronized to a heartbeat. He proposed to call it “De Musset’s sign,” after French writer Alfred de Musset, who displayed the same characteristic head-shaking. The eponym coined by Delpeuch is used to this day. He also published the history of the gout from antiquity to the end of the 17th century. It was the authoritative source on the history of this disease for more than half a century.

Delpeuch’s book is not very old or rare, nor is it a unique copy. What is so special about it then? It is valuable because of the context in which this book exists. It is a part of our Rodnan Collection. Continue reading

HSLS Staff News

The HSLS Staff News section includes recent HSLS presentations, publications, staff changes, staff promotions, degrees earned, etc.

Names in bold are HSLS-affiliated

News

Francesca Yates, Research and Instruction Librarian, completed the MLA Continuing Education course, CAIFL: Critical Appraisal Institute for Librarians, on March 16, 2021, earning 35 MLA CE credits.

Publications

Jill Foust, Research and Instruction Librarian:

Evans MA, Buysse DJ, Marsland AL, Wright AGC, Foust J, Carroll LW, Kohli N, Mehra R, Jasper A, Srinivasan S, Hall MH. Meta-analysis of age and actigraphy assessed sleep characteristics across the lifespan. Sleep. 2021 Apr 5:zsab088. doi: 10.1093/sleep/zsab088. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33823052. Continue reading

Featured Workshop: Basic EndNote

HSLS offers classes in a wide array of subjects—molecular biology, database searching, bibliographic management, and more! You can quickly view all Upcoming Classes and Events or sign up to receive the weekly Upcoming HSLS Classes and Workshops email.

This month’s featured workshop is Basic EndNote. The workshop will take place on Monday, May 17, from 10-11:30 a.m.

Basic EndNote is a popular workshop at HSLS, as EndNote is a well-known reference management tool that helps to streamline your entire research process. The EndNote software provides assistance in your research practice by allowing you to collect, save, and organize references all in one place for quick and easy access. Then once you’re ready to write, EndNote creates in-text citations and bibliographies for you through a Word plug-in, allowing you to easily switch to different citation styles as needed.

This workshop is ideal for anyone looking for an easier way to manage references and for those tired of creating their bibliographies by hand. Continue reading