Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Here’s how you know

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

MeSH Indexing Policy Change for Obituaries and In Memoriam

MeSH Indexing Policy Change for Obituaries and In Memoriam. NLM Tech Bull. 2018 May-Jun;(422):b5.

May 21, 2018 [posted]

As of June 1, 2018, obituaries and in memoriam articles will no longer be cited and indexed with Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) for MEDLINE.

In the past, many obituaries and "in memoriam" articles were indexed for MEDLINE based on subjective criteria that lead to inconsistent coverage; if an article was substantive it was cited and indexed with MeSH. However, most obituaries and in memoriam articles are not substantive and will no longer be cited and indexed. Substantive biographies will continue to be indexed for MEDLINE.