From CINAHL Help Topics:

Limiters

Limiters let you narrow the focus of your search so that the information retrieved from the databases you search is limited according to the values you select. You can use more than one limiter if more than one is available.

Common limiters that may appear in the Limit your results area include:

• Full Text – Click to limit results to articles with full text.

• Image Quick View – Click to limit results to articles that contain Image Quick View images available.

• Cover Story – Click to limit results to articles that were featured as cover stories.

• Local Titles – Click to limit results to articles available at your library.

• Journal/Magazine – Enter a journal/magazine name in this field to limit results to articles only from that title.

• Abstract Available – Click to limit results to articles that include an abstract summarizing the contents of the article.

• Peer Reviewed – Limits search results to articles from peer-reviewed journals. Peer-reviewed journals are publications that include only those articles that have been reviewed and/or qualified by a selected panel of acknowledged experts in the field of study covered by the journal.

• Date Published – Use this option to search for articles within a specified date range. Create a range by using the drop-down lists to specify the months of the range and enter the last four digits of the year in the entry fields to specify the years of the range.

• Number of Pages – Enter a number in this field to limit results to a specific number of pages in length. Place the < (less than) or > (greater than) symbol before the number to search for articles with a specific page length range. For example: to search for articles that are greater than three pages in length, enter >3 in this field. You can also use a dash to enter a range of pages. For example, to find articles between five and ten pages long, enter 5 - 10.

Limiters do limit one another. If you select both Full Text and Cover Story limiters, the results that are retrieved include only Full Text items that are Cover Story items. The exception to this rule is the use of Full Text and Local Titles limiters. In this situation, use of these limiters produces a list of results that has Full Text or is part of a local collection.

(The use of limiters may also vary by database. For example, MEDLINE may handle limiters differently than e-psyche.)

To create a search using a limiter:

1. In the Find field, enter your search terms.

2. Select the limiters you want to use from the Limit Your Results section of the search screen.

3. Click Search. The Result List appears.

Using Limiters with Advanced Search

Both database-specific limiters and global limiters are available to apply to your search term. When you search more than one database, the common limiters are displayed under the Limit Your Results heading. Other limiters may appear under the Special Limiters for: Database Name heading.

Limiters are applied to your search with the AND operator. When you make multiple selections from within a limiter (such as Publication Type or Language) those selections are applied with the OR operator. Limiters are applied to the entire search, and appear at the end of the search with the AND operator.

For example, if you perform a search and use limiters, the search is performed as follows:

search term and limiters

If you make multiple selections from the options available for a single limiter by pressing Control - Enter when searching from a list box, the search is performed as follows:

search term and ((one limiter or another limiter) and limiters)

For example: if you enter heart in the Find field, select the Full Text limiter, and select both Case Studies and Practice Guideline from the Publication Type limiter, the search is constructed as follows:

heart AND ((PT Case Studies OR PT Practice Guideline) and FT Y))