Fact Sheet
MedlinePlus^®

Return to Web VersionPrinter-friendly Version

What is MedlinePlus?
MedlinePlus (http://medlineplus.gov/) is the National Library of Medicine's web site for consumer health information.

What information is in MedlinePlus?

• Health Topics are the core of MedlinePlus. Health topics pages link to health information from NIH and other authoritative sources and also include a MEDLINE/PubMed® search, current news items about the topic, and links to related topics.
• Medical Encyclopedia - an extensive collection of medical images as well as 4,000 articles about diseases, tests, symptoms, injuries and surgeries
• Interactive Health Tutorials - programs that use animated graphics and sound to explain conditions and procedures in easy-to-read language
• Drugs, Supplements, and Herbal Information - prescription and over-the-counter medicines, plus herbs and supplements
• Current Health News - late-breaking stories about medicine and health
• Dictionary - spellings and definitions of medical terms
• Directories - locations and credentials of doctors, dentists and hospitals
• Other Resources include:
  • Go Local - find health services in your home town
  • Organizations - a collection of organizations providing health information
  • Libraries - consumer health libraries providing services to local residents
  • Databases - resources beyond MedlinePlus covering special topics and collections
  • MEDLINE/PubMed - search articles published in biomedical journals
  • Special Collections of
    • Easy-to-Read materials
    • Low vision resources
    • Health check tools

How are links selected for MedlinePlus?
MedlinePlus is not an exhaustive list of every health web resource. It is a selective list of authoritative health information sources from NIH and other government and professional organizations in the U.S. A link to the guidelines is on the "About MedlinePlus" page. MedlinePlus includes mostly U.S. resources.

MedlinePlus facts
System - Oracle database and Cold Fusion application
Resources are updated nightly (date on page indicates date of most recent change)
Released October 22, 1998
Includes over 700 topics
For more statistics, see the MedlinePlus Statistics FAQ (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/faq/stats.html)

Need more information?
NLM's toll-free number is 1-888-FINDNLM (1-888-346-3656)
NLM's e-mail address is custserv@nlm.nih.gov

A complete list of NLM Fact Sheets is available at:
(alphabetical list) http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/factsheets/factsheets.html
(subject list): http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/factsheets/factsubj.html

FACT SHEETS
Office of Communications and Public Liaison
National Library of Medicine
8600 Rockville Pike
Bethesda, Maryland 20894

Phone: (301) 496-6308
Fax: (301) 496-4450
email: publicinfo@nlm.nih.gov

Last updated: 24 April 2006
First published: 22 October 2001
Metadata| Permanence level: Permanent: Stable Content