The development of the Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System (MEDLARS).

OBJECTIVE

The research provides a chronology of the US National Library of Medicine's (NLM's) contribution to access to the world's biomedical literature through its computerization of biomedical indexes, particularly the Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System (MEDLARS).

METHOD

Using material gathered from NLM's archives and from personal interviews with people associated with developing MEDLARS and its associated systems, the author discusses key events in the history of MEDLARS.

DISCUSSION

From the development of the early mechanized bibliographic retrieval systems of the 1940s and to the beginnings of online, interactive computerized bibliographic search systems of the early 1970s chronicled here, NLM's contributions to automation and bibliographic retrieval have been extensive.

CONCLUSION

As NLM's technological experience and expertise grew, innovative bibliographic storage and retrieval systems emerged. NLM's accomplishments regarding MEDLARS were cutting edge, placing the library at the forefront of incorporating mechanization and technologies into medical information systems.