Gathering background information, or "presearch" is a crucial part of information gathering. Reference books are a great source of background information. Suggested resources for background information include:
Databases that cross-search books:
Over 28 million citations for biomedical literature from MEDLINE, life science journals, and ebooks that may link to full text content. Some articles, journals, and books are Open Access.
Full text articles from over 70 journals as well as legal cases, clinical innovations, critical paths, drug records, research instruments, and clinical trials. Also includes two million citations for over 2,900 journals from 1981 to present.
Searches one, several, or all of the Gale databases simultaneously.
Drug and disease information including drug identification, drug dosing calculation, AHFS content, and patient education materials. Also includes Trissel’s IV compatibility, drug reports searchable by adverse reaction, indication, and contraindication, as well as MSDS and toxicology information.
To determine the terminology being used for the condition you're searching:
An example for finding the terminology for a condition would be looking up the drug Atenolol, going into the Lexi-Drugs monograph under the Uses section and determining that hypertension is the terminology being used for high blood pressure.
Now that you know the terminology for the condition you're interested in: