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Welcome to Medical Subject Headings!

The NLM's curated medical vocabulary resource.

Our main purpose is to provide a hierarchically-organized terminology for indexing and cataloging of biomedical information such as MEDLINE/PUBmed and other NLM databases. We also distribute pharmaceutical information through our RxNorm database, and manage the curation of the UMLS and SnoMed database.

Explore MeSH Vocabulary

What's New

Visit our What's New page to see all recent MeSH developments including the most recent ones listed below

  • 2017 MeSH files- The November release of 2017 MeSH Descriptors, Qualifiers, and Supplemental Records is now available.
  • A new version of the MeSH Browser is now running! The old browser has been retired after many years of sevice.
  • New FTP site! MeSH files from 1999-present are now available via a simple FTP file structure

Obtain MeSH Data

Learn About MeSH

Related MeSH Efforts

  • RxNorm: A drug vocabulary used for e-prescribing, formulary, medication history, government reporting, drug compendia mapping, and other uses
  • Daily Med: Provides trustworthy information about marketed drugs in the United States
  • Unified Medical Language System (UMLS®) Metathesaurus: A collection of biomedical names and codes grouped as sets of synonyms, derived from over 150 medical vocabulary sources.
  • NLM Classification: A NLM vocabulary used for the arrangement of library materials in the field of medicine and related sciences.

User Input and Suggestions