Boolean Operators

More than one keyword can be used in a search, by combining them with a Boolean operator (and, or, or not). 

• and - Combining keywords such as treatment and depression narrows the search to information on the treatment of depression
• or - It is generally a good idea to use synonyms or related terms to ensure that the search is as complete as possible, such as child? or infant? to broaden your search to include information on either children or infants
• not - Excluding an unwanted subset is a simple way to reduce the total number of results, such as depression not bipolar
• Combination - You may combine terms with multiple operators by using parentheses around the or subsets, and put the not group at the end, such as treatment and (child? or infant?) and depression not bipolar

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Last Revised: MS - 8/10/2007