58. Abstracts PROFESSIONAL ENGLISH IN USE FOR MEDICINE

PROFESSIONAL ENGLISH IN USE FOR MEDICINE

58. Abstracts

A	Structured abstracts An abstract is a type of summary, and may be found in special collections of abstracts, such as Medline, or in conference programmes, as well as at the beginning of a research article. Many journals require contributors (authors wishing to publish their articles in the journal) to provide a structured abstract – an abstract which is divided into specific sections.
B	The BMJ abstract The British Medical Journal structured abstract is divided into the following sections: √ Objective √ Main outcome measure √ Design √ Results √ Setting √ Conclusion √ Subjects Here is an example AGE AT RETIREMENT AND LONG TERM SURVIVAL OF AN INDUSTRIAL POPULATION: PROSPECTIVE COHORT STUDY OBJECTIVE To assess whether early retirement is associated with better survival. DESIGN Long term prospective cohort study SETTING Petroleum and petrochemical industry, United States SUBJECTS Pat employees of Shell Oil who retired at ages 55, 60, and 65, between 1 January 1973 and 31 December 2003 MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Hazard ratio of death adjusted for sex, year of entry to study, and socioeconomic status.

EXERCISES

58.1	Complete the sentences. Look at B above to help you. 1 The __________ is the aim or purpose of the research. 2 The __________ is the location – the country, or part of a country (e.g. hospital, school, etc.) 3 The __________ are the people that the researchers studied. 4 An __________ is a result. 5 The __________ is the type of study, for example randomized controlled trial.
58.2	Answer the questions about the abstract in B above. 1 Who took part in the study? 2 What was the aim of the study? 3 Where was it carried out? 4 What did they measure? 5 What type of study was it? 6 According to this study, does retiring early prolong life?
58.3	The sections of the abstract below are in the wrong order, and the headings have been removed. Decide the correct order, and give each section a title from B opposite. 1 England, Scotland, and Wales. 2 History of asthma, wheezy bronchitis, or wheezing obtained from interview with subjects’ parents at ages 7, 11, and 16 and reported at interview by subjects at ages 23 and 33.
58.4	Some journals use different headings to those in the BMJ. Match the headings (1-5) to the corresponding BMJ headings (a-e).

Answer key