Tip #32: Non-Latin Characters in Ovid MEDLINE
A recent search project on "17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase deficiency" inspired me to investigate how non-Latin characters are handled across various databases. This week we will look at how Ovid MEDLINE handles non-Latin and special characters using the following examples: 17β-HSD (17 beta-HSD) cáncer (Spanish for Cancer) سرطان (Arabic for Cancer) The help documentation wasn't in-depth enough for my needs so I reached out to Ruth Bernstein, a Tech Support team member at Wolters Kluwer, for further assistance. This post is based on our email exchange. Thanks, Ruth! If you attempt to run any of the above searches, you will get the following error message: 17β-HSD As indicated by the error message, special characters (such as β) are not searchable on Ovid . You will need to transliterate the Greek character and include it with the acronym spelled out, the full name of the substance, and the substance as a MeSH term. 17 beta HSD.mp. 277 17-Hydroxysteroid Dehydr