Geographic Barriers to Indexing: Examining Appalachia

Area of Science:

• Information Science
• Medical Informatics
• Regional Studies

Background:

• Accurate database indexing is crucial for effective information retrieval.
• Automated indexing systems are increasingly used, raising concerns about their reliability.
• The Appalachian Region [Mesh] term's indexing accuracy has not been thoroughly evaluated.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the accuracy of "Appalachian Region"[Mesh] indexing in PubMed.
• To determine the relevance of articles retrieved using "Appalachian Region"[Mesh] and related terms.
• To highlight potential issues in automated database indexing.

Main Methods:

• PubMed search conducted for articles published in 2019.
• Search terms included "Appalachian Region"[Mesh], "Appalachia", and "Appalachian" in title or abstract.
• Article relevance assessed based on the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) definition.

Main Results:

• Only 17.88% of retrieved articles accurately pertained to Appalachia based on the ARC definition.
• A significant number of irrelevant articles were included due to indexing with state-specific terms.
• Indexing discrepancies suggest potential flaws in the automated cataloging process.

Conclusions:

• The indexing accuracy for "Appalachian Region"[Mesh] in PubMed is suboptimal.
• Current indexing practices may lead to the retrieval of many irrelevant articles.
• Enhanced transparency and accuracy in automated database indexing are necessary.