LILACS Support Center
About LILACS
LILACS, which stands for Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Literature, is an information ecosystem that encompasses methodologies and technologies for the management, storage, curation, and publication of technical and scientific documents and specialized bibliographic databases in Health Sciences, in a decentralized and collaborative manner for its coordination, feeding, and maintenance. It comprises over 100 specialized bibliographic databases in Health, with LILACS being the largest and most comprehensive among them.
Category: About LILACS
The LILACS Methodology is a set of policies, systems, and workflows aimed at creating and managing a bibliographic database focused on the registration of scientific and technical literature in health in a country or thematic area.
Basic documentation:
- Document Selection Guide
- Bibliographic Description Manual
- Document Indexing Manual
- LILACS Management Manual
Systems and interfaces:
- Network Directory
- BIREME Accounts
- FI-Admin System
- SeCS – Serials in Health Sciences
- DeCS/MeSH Descriptors
- iAHx Search Interface
Explore the complete documentation and all systems at: LILACS Methodology
Category: About LILACS
The Latin American and Caribbean System of Information on Health Sciences is a network of institutions that promotes the integration and exchange of information and experiences in the areas of research publication, scientific communication, and the management and dissemination of health information.
This network includes national health information systems, institutions such as ministries of health, science and technology, universities, and national or regional scientific centers and societies.
The LILACS network aims to cooperate and support the development of research, education, policies, and health care in Latin America and the Caribbean through the publication, control, and dissemination of scientific and technical information produced in the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean.
Category: About LILACS
Reasons why LILACS is important:
1 – Provides visibility and access to scientific and technical literature that is invisible and not indexed in other databases.
2 – Provides visibility and access to scientific evidence contextualized to the population’s reality, which promotes social impact on public health policies.
3 – Includes documentation for researchers and students in health sciences, public health managers, and health professionals.
4 – Is an information ecosystem with a decentralized and collaborative information management model specialized in Health Sciences.
5 – Offers continuously updated methodology and technology aligned with editorial trends in health and emerging technologies.
6 – Has methodologies and technologies that conform to international standards for research, publication, and management of scientific and technical information in Health Sciences.
7 – Supports and drives national and regional Open Science initiatives.
8 – Strengthens national systems and networks in health research, education, services, and information.
9 – Is led in countries and thematic areas by institutions recognized for excellence in their field.
10 – Develops local capacities through coordination meetings, training of multipliers, professional training, and publication of documentation for management and training purposes.
11 – Has a fully online platform.
12 – Uses open-source technologies.
13 – Is a tested, approved, and adopted ecosystem in other regional and global initiatives such as African Index Medicus, Global Index Medicus, MTCI Global, COVID-19 platform (discontinued after the pandemic), and others.
Category: About LILACS
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LILACS Database
The LILACS database, which stands for Latin American and Caribbean Literature on Health Sciences, is a specialized bibliographic index with scientific and technical production in Health Sciences published by institutions in Latin America and the Caribbean.
It is a free-access database, without the need for a subscription, coordinated by BIREME/PAHO/WHO and maintained by a network of national and thematic coordinators, journal editors, and cooperating centers that make up the LILACS Network.
It contains more than one million documents from 30 countries, with about 70% linked to full texts. The types of documents accepted include:
- Books and book chapters
- Papers published in conference or symposium proceedings
- Technical-scientific reports
- Government documents
- Doctoral theses or highest degree theses in all areas of Health Sciences
- Master’s dissertations in Public Health and Nursing
- Articles from journals indexed in LILACS;
- Other documents in accordance with the Document Selection Guide for the LILACS Database.
Category: LILACS Database
LILACS is the main and most comprehensive database specializing in scientific and technical health literature published in Latin American and Caribbean countries. The Regional Portal of the Virtual Health Library (VHL) is a portal that integrates over 50 databases available for research, so LILACS is one of the databases included in the Portal.
Category: LILACS Database
LILACS is a cooperative database of the BIREME System that comprises literature related to Health Sciences published in Latin American and Caribbean countries. SciELO is an electronic library that includes a selected collection of Brazilian scientific journals.
LILACS and the Latin American and Caribbean System of Information on Health Sciences (LILACS Network) are the methodology and system of origin for SciELO. Therefore, there is compatibility in the criteria for journal selection, data format, and technologies between both initiatives. Consequently, health and psychology journals and documentation from Latin American and Caribbean countries included in SciELO are accepted in the LILACS collection and are automatically harvested by BIREME when data is available via OAI-PMH or FTP (LILACS-Express Initiative).
Category: LILACS Database
No, the LILACS dhttps://lilacs.bvsalud.org/en/atabase is free to access. Simply go to LILACS and search using the search box.
Category: LILACS Database
The LILACS database is freely accessible online through its official portal: https://lilacs.bvsalud.org
Category: LILACS Database
The operation of the LILACS database involves:
- LILACS Methodology: This includes a set of policies, systems, and workflows that ensure the consistency and quality of bibliographic records. This encompasses everything from data collection to thematic indexing and publication of literature in a search interface.
- LILACS Network: Health institutions in the region collaborate to collect, describe, and index documents using the LILACS Methodology. Additionally, recognized institutions lead the identification of priority topics, coordination of assessment and selection of journals, management, and training of the cooperation network. BIREME/PAHO/WHO acts as the regional coordinating center.
- Access: The database is accessible for free through the LILACS portal, allowing searches for documents such as journal articles, theses, monographs, technical reports, and more.
Category: LILACS Database
The LILACS thematic areas are fields of knowledge considered priorities for the health of the population of Latin America and the Caribbean and have had their collections developed prominently within the LILACS database.
The coordinators of LILACS thematic areas are responsible for the leadership, development, and management of the collection and the collaborative network for the LILACS database and their own thematic databases. They are responsible for forming specific committees for the evaluation and selection of scientific journals and managing the collaborative network.
Coordination of Nursing
- Dr. Francisco Félix Lana
- Coordinator of the VHL Nursing
- Federal University of Minas Gerais
- Contact: BR21.2
Coordination of Dentistry
- Lúcia Maria Sebastiana Verônica da Costa Ramos
- Coordinator of the VHL Dentistry
- University of São Paulo
- Contact: BR97.1
The field of Psychology was previously a thematic area of LILACS. However, currently, the coordination of the Brazilian network and BIREME/PAHO/WHO have assumed the coordination and perform the bibliographic control, network management, and journal evaluation for this area.
For questions about the evaluation and selection of journals for LILACS, please contact us.
Category: LILACS Database
Most of the documentation recorded in the LILACS database already has a link to the full text directly in the detailed record of the search interface.
For older or printed documentation, you should contact the library indicated in the document’s location in the record.
If the document you want to access is a journal article, contact us and request support.
If you cannot identify the library by the Cooperating Center (CC) code, search for the code in the VHL Network Directory.
Category: LILACS Database
No. Only articles published after the journal has been accepted for indexing in the database are available. LILACS includes only articles that contain scientific and technical discussion. Editorials that merely present the journal’s content, news, and non-scientific content are not included.
In the case of journals with selective indexing, only health-related articles are indexed.
Category: LILACS Database
No. Starting in 2013, it was established that all journals indexed in LILACS must provide free and open access to all articles included in the database. However, articles from journals indexed before 2013 may not have full-text links available.
Category: LILACS Database
The LILACS database is updated daily by members of the LILACS Network, and BIREME/PAHO/WHO performs automated data collections and uploads monthly.
Category: LILACS Database
Processing and publication of references take two days to complete.
Category: LILACS Database
BIREME/PAHO/WHO no longer maintains a physical collection of journal issues. The previous collection was donated to the Federal University of São Paulo (Unifesp).
Category: LILACS Database
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Selection Criteria of LILACS
The LILACS database accepts documents in the field of Health Sciences and related areas if they include discussions on human health and are published by institutions in Latin America and the Caribbean. The types of documents accepted are books and chapters, doctoral or higher degree theses, master’s dissertations in the fields of Public Health and Nursing, gray literature, unconventional literature, and journal articles evaluated and selected by LILACS’ national and thematic Evaluation Committees. For more details, consult the LILACS database document selection guide.
Category: Selection Criteria of LILACS
For a journal to be indexed in LILACS, it must contain original scientific articles in the field of Health Sciences and meet the Selection and Continuity Criteria for Journals in LILACS Brazil.
Category: Selection Criteria of LILACS
Is there a difference in the selection criteria applied across LILACS countries and thematic areas?
Yes, especially when it comes to evaluating journals for indexing in the LILACS database. Each coordinating body is responsible for analyzing the LILACS criteria at the regional level and adjusting them to the local context. However, local criteria should never be broader than regional criteria. Adjustments should make the criteria more restrictive.
Category: Selection Criteria of LILACS
Because LILACS includes documents published by the Pan American Health Organization, whose headquarters are in the United States.
Category: Selection Criteria of LILACS
Yes, but what differentiates how the registration in the database will be is the provision or not of the full text of the work or if only the abstracts are available.
In the case of supplements that contain only the abstracts, it will be registered in full, without description of each of the abstracts. In the case of full texts of the papers presented, each work is a bibliographic record.
Special issues must follow the same procedures adopted for normal journal volumes, that is, they must maintain all editorial processes such as registration in ethics committees, peer review of articles, verification of similarity of contents, among other procedures.
Category: Selection Criteria of LILACS
Yes, including description procedures that relate to the article being commented on, retracted, or corrected. Check the LILACS bibliographic description manual for more details.
Category: Selection Criteria of LILACS
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Selection of Periodicals for LILACS
The journal selection process is decentralized and carried out by National Journal Evaluation and Selection Committees, which are composed of Coordinators in each country or LILACS thematic area.
The criteria for evaluating and selecting journals for indexing in the LILACS database are applied across all countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. When a national or thematic coordination adapts these criteria to the scientific context of its country and has them validated by BIREME/PAHO/WHO, this adapted criterion is the one adopted in the evaluation process.
Category: Selection of Periodicals for LILACS
They are composed of health and information specialists who are or have been editors of journals indexed in LILACS, appointed by the National or Thematic Coordinating Center of LILACS.
Category: Selection of Periodicals for LILACS
The evaluation and selection of journals for indexing in LILACS are decentralized because each country or thematic area has unique characteristics that reflect its local scientific landscape. Health priorities, research agendas, community size, and different study designs require a personalized approach tailored to this reality. The formation of local committees aims to ensure a thorough, appropriate, and fair evaluation, highlighting specialized journals that meet LILACS quality standards and demonstrate integrity and transparency in research and publication of results.
Because each country or thematic area has specific characteristics that reflect the local scientific environment, and given the various study designs conducted in different areas and specialties, the establishment of local committees aims to provide a rigorous, appropriate, and fair evaluation. This process highlights (selects) specialized journals that meet LILACS quality standards and demonstrate integrity and transparency in the research and publication of developed research results.
Category: Selection of Periodicals for LILACS
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Selection of Periodicals for LILACS Brazil
The current version of the evaluation and permanence criteria for Brazilian journals is published at https://lilacs.bvsalud.org/guias-e-manuais/docs/criterios-de-selecao-e-permanencia-de-periodicos-lilacs-brasil/.
To learn about the criteria at the regional level, visit: https://lilacs.bvsalud.org/guias-e-manuais/docs/metodologia-lilacs-criterios-de-selecao-e-permanencia-de-periodicos/.
Both the presentation and standardization, as well as endogeneity (geographic and institutional concentration of the published authors and the editorial committee), are evaluated, along with the scientific content of the journal.
The selection process for journals in the LILACS Brazil collection is based on the LILACS Brazil selection and continuation criteria. Journals submitted for evaluation undergo analyses of format and standardization, endogeneity (geographical and institutional distribution of the editorial committee and authors), as well as content analysis by specialists in the field. The journal must have at least 50% original articles to be considered for selection and its publication schedule must be up to date.
This process is coordinated by BIREME/PAHO/WHO as one of the activities provided for in the Cooperation Agreement with the Brazilian Ministry of Health, which coordinates the Brazilian Health Sciences Information Network.
Yes! Always from 01 to 30 April of this year.
The same criteria apply for the evaluation of electronic or print journals. Please refer to the Selection and Continuation Criteria for Journals in LILACS Brazil.
Editors of print journals must submit full texts in electronic format within the LILACS journal evaluation platform. No printed documentation will be accepted.
Editors of electronic journals should provide a link for accessing the full text of articles on their own websites within the LILACS journal evaluation platform. They are responsible for maintaining the persistence of the link, ensuring access to content 24 hours a day, seven days a week during the evaluation process.
All journals in the health field are evaluated by the LILACS Brazil Journals Evaluation and Selection Committee, except for Nursing and Dentistry, which have their own committees.
The LILACS Brazil Journals Evaluation and Selection Committee decides on the indexing and exclusion of a journal from the LILACS Brazil collection based on reports issued by the BIREME coordination team and opinions from experts in the journal’s knowledge area.
- Adeilton Alves Brandão, from Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, representing the Biomedical Sciences area
- André Luiz Félix Rodacki, from Federal University of Paraná, representing the Physical Education area (including Speech Therapy, Physical Education, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy, and Sports Medicine)
- Antônio de Pádua Pithon Cyrino, from São Paulo State University Júlio de Mesquita Filho, representing the Public Health area (including Nutrition)
- Drª Edna Frasson de Souza Montero, from University of São Paulo, representing the Clinical and Surgical Medicine area
- Drª Mary Sandra Carlotto, representing the Psychology area • Dr. Silvia Berlanga de Moraes Barros, from University of São Paulo, representing the Pharmacy area
- Drª Silvia Berlanga de Moraes Barros, da Universidade de São Paulo, membro representante da área de Farmácia
- Drª Maria Helena Palucci Marziale, from University of São Paulo, representing the Nursing thematic area
- Sigmar de Mello Rode, from São Paulo State University Júlio de Mesquita Filho, representing the Dentistry thematic area
The assessment from the National Selection Committee will be sent to the journal’s editor via email, typically containing recommendations for modifications to the journal and a timeframe for implementation.
The results are published on the LILACS portal after the meeting of the LILACS Brazil Journals Evaluation and Selection Committee. The forecast is for the results to be published by the third week of October, and the improvement recommendations report to be sent by the end of December.
► EDITORIAL TEAM
Assess the representativeness of the Editorial Board of the journal, considering their contribution, suitability, and scientific merit of its members.
► CONTENT
Based on the analysis of the content of the articles under evaluation, provide opinions on the following aspects, justifying your opinion in writing:
a) Are the articles aligned with the scope and objectives of the journal? Are the topics covered in the articles relevant to the field and current scientific developments?
b) Do the journal’s guidelines outline a clear and well-defined methodological structure? Are there sufficient details to ensure reproducibility of the research?
c) Comment on the methodological quality and structure of the articles. Is the study design adequate to address the hypotheses and research objectives? Does the methodological structure facilitate easy reading and comprehension? Do studies of the same nature exhibit consistent methodological standards?
d) Are the results clearly described? Do the discussions focus on the data obtained and the results achieved, emphasizing new and significant aspects observed in the study and discussing agreements and disagreements with other published research?
e) Are quality guidelines and standards applied in article preparation (e.g., Red Equator, PRISMA, etc.)?
f) What ethical and research integrity best practices are reflected in the journal and its published articles? (e.g., COPE, ICMJE)
g) Considering Open Science principles, analyze and comment on the aspects already implemented in the journal:
h) Is the writing style of the articles appropriate, reflecting editorial care?
i) Are article titles concise and clear? Are abstracts structured, objective, and provide a correct understanding of the article content? Do keywords represent the content and adopt DeCS / MeSH descriptors where possible?
j) Comment on the quality of graphical elements in the journal such as images, tables, and graphs (abbreviation definitions in footnotes, units of quantities, coherent and clear titles, properly cited sources, DOI, etc.). Do they facilitate independent understanding without the need for full article reading?
k) Are the communication channels and strategies, both for article dissemination and submission calls, adequate?
l) Do you consider that the articles published in the journal have sufficient quality, depth, and methodological consistency to justify their inclusion in LILACS?
► PEER REVIEW
Provide opinions on the peer review process conducted by the journal regarding the following aspects:
a) Presentation of the procedures adopted by the journal for article analysis and approval.
b) Information from the peer review form used by the journal for article evaluation.
► FINAL OPINION
Assign a rating to the journal based on the evaluation conducted.
( ) priority
( ) important
( ) relative importance
( ) not relevant
Provide your opinion on the importance of the journal for the development of the field.
Indicate necessary improvements and specific comments to be communicated to the editor.
In your opinion, are there journals more important to this field than the journal under review? If yes, please indicate below:
It will be indexed starting from the issue following the one that was evaluated.
Retrospective indexing is only performed if recommended by the Selection Committee.
The journal editor can request a new evaluation one year after the last evaluation.
Important: The history of recommendations made by the LILACS Brazil Journals Evaluation and Selection Committee to journals is reviewed, and if it is found that recommendations have not been implemented, the documentation may be disregarded during the pre-analysis phase of journals.
Yes, please check the criteria and register as a volunteer: LILACS (bvsalud.org).
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LILACS-Express
LILACS-Express is the process of contributing to and updating the database with newly published articles from indexed journals, without waiting for the publication of other articles in the journal’s volume or issue. Since it is an express process, only basic data and a link to the full text of the article are available, and records with LILACS-Express status are considered incomplete because they require a review of cataloging data and the terms that describe the content/subject of the article.
Key Features:
- Speed of dissemination: Articles are quickly registered, allowing immediate access to recent scientific findings, even before the full issue of the journal is published.
- Subsequent updating: After the articles are published in LILACS, the records are reviewed and enriched with additional information, including thematic indexing with DeCS/MeSH thesaurus terms and other descriptive data.
- Participation of the LILACS Network: Editors, editorial team members, and information professionals from cooperating centers collaborate in the review and updating of data in the database management system.
- Automated collections and uploads: This procedure is carried out according to international standards for bibliographic data and interoperability, agreed upon between the data-providing institution and BIREME/PAHO/WHO.
The LILACS-Express initiative, though focused on journals indexed in LILACS, is also applied to other bibliographic databases such as BDENF and VetIndex. Additionally, other types of documents may receive LILACS-Express status if they do not have the Primary Descriptor field filled with DeCS/MeSH term.
Category: LILACS-Express
LILACS-Express optimizes and accelerates the article updating process in the LILACS database, extends the exposure time of the article, and facilitates cooperation among editors, editorial team members, and librarians of the Cooperating Centers of the LILACS Network.
Category: LILACS-Express
The LILACS-Express process involves four actors:
- Editors or members of editorial teams of journals indexed in LILACS and databases that adopt the LILACS Methodology, including those integrated into the BIREME’s information sources management system (FI-Admin) or provide data collection services.
- Information professionals from Cooperating Centers who review cataloging curation and perform thematic indexing of documents adopting the LILACS Methodology.
- BIREME, which maintains servers, online systems, conducts data collection, processing, and publishes databases and their search interfaces.
- Authors of published articles and researchers who can review data and report on inconsistencies or outdated information in LILACS.
Category: LILACS-Express
A journal becomes part of the LILACS-Express initiative if it is approved for indexing after the Process of Evaluation and Selection of LILACS Journals in Brazil or through evaluation processes conducted by LILACS coordinations.
Category: LILACS-Express
LILACS is the database, while LILACS-Express is a procedure used for the automatic collection of data and the status of the record that indicates the document has been registered with basic data and a link to the full text, as provided by the editor.
Category: LILACS-Express
Editors of journals indexed in LILACS are required to initiate their cooperation and maintain the update of their journal’s articles in the database, as delays can result in the termination of the journal’s indexing.
Category: LILACS-Express
Editors and editorial team members of the journals indexed in LILACS are responsible for submitting/entering the data. In the case of SciELO collections:
Category: LILACS-Express
Data entry (contributing to the LILACS database) can be done by:
- Manual creation of records within the FI-Admin integrated management system.
Access specific documentation through the LILACS Methodology page. - Automated data collection and upload:
BIREME/PAHO/WHO carries out the automated collection of data provided by the editor. Current collections include SciELO, with other platforms under evaluation.
The data provider institution commits to the quantity and quality of the data, as well as the continuous provision of updated data in the collection service and trained professionals to promptly respond to data adequacy demands.
Minimum requirements to assess the feasibility of periodic collections:
- Availability of a collection service with OAI-PMH standard;
- Metadata in Dublin Core qualified, DIM, MODS standard, or another with equal or greater data availability and quality;
- Timeliness in publication and continuous updating of the collection service;
- A minimum number of articles per year as per LILACS selection and permanence criteria.
Category: LILACS-Express
An editor or a member of the editorial team should monitor the publication process of the articles. If there are any delays or inconsistencies, they should contact the national LILACS coordinator to verify the occurrence.
Category: LILACS-Express
Yes, there are differences. However, one rule applies to both: all editors of journals indexed in LILACS must adhere to the LILACS-Express initiative and commit to the prompt updating and maintenance of data in the BIREME/PAHO/WHO management system.
Editors of printed journals commit to manually entering and maintaining basic data and uploading the full texts of each article into the FI-Admin system.
Editors of electronic journals commit to manually entering and maintaining basic data, uploading full texts of each article into the FI-Admin system, or offering a basic data collection service (OAI-PMH) with data completeness and consistency that enables automated loading. They also commit to ensuring link persistence—24/7 access to content, digital preservation of articles by adopting appropriate standards and systems, and manual data maintenance and updating in the FI-Admin system in case of any unavailability or data inconsistency in previously provided information.
Category: LILACS-Express
BIREME collects data from journals in the Health Sciences and Psychology fields indexed in SciELO for monthly loading into the LILACS database.
Category: LILACS-Express
The Cooperating Centers remain responsible for reviewing the cataloging and thematic indexing of journal articles.
The curation and quality of the data after the records are published in LILACS are also the responsibility of the CC. To correct broken links to full texts or any other inconsistent data, access the FI-Admin system. If you have difficulty editing a record with published status, contact the LILACS team.
Category: LILACS-Express
The update frequency varies depending on the method of data entry in the LILACS database:
- Automated data collection and upload from platforms like SciELO and DSpace: monthly.
- Manual data entry by members of the editorial teams of journals indexed in LILACS using the FI-Admin system: daily. The timeliness of contributions is the responsibility of the editor.
In both cases, the processing and publication time in the search interface is two (2) days.
Category: LILACS-Express
Yes, click on “Full text” to access the content of the articles’ documents.
Category: LILACS-Express
Because some step in the automated process may have been altered or is experiencing instability, whether due to internet availability at the time of collection or changes in the servers and data collection services of the data provider institutions.
The editor or any member of the editorial team should monitor the monthly update to prevent the articles from becoming outdated and consequently unavailable in LILACS, leading to the termination of indexing. The national or thematic coordinator of LILACS is also responsible for this monitoring.
Category: LILACS-Express
Yes. The indexing, which means the assignment of subject descriptors that represent the content of the articles, continues to be performed by the Cooperating Centers of the LILACS network in a decentralized manner and according to their assignments and responsibilities. Thus, the bibliographic reference of the article, once indexed, becomes a complete record according to the LILACS Methodology.
Category: LILACS-Express
After the cataloging review and thematic indexing of records with LILACS-Express status, the records are considered complete, and their status is updated to “Published.” For the researcher, the difference lies in retrieval that includes DeCS/MeSH descriptors and more reliable descriptive data following the review.
Category: LILACS-Express
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Treatment of Periodicals in the LILACS Methodology
Whenever the title of the journal changes, the bibliometric indicators of the journal will also be reset, as it is considered a new title. In the databases, articles published under the old title will be separated from those published under the new title, losing their publication history.
To prevent this separation in the LILACS collection, it is essential to update the title change information in the ISSN and immediately inform the LILACS management team so that this history can be updated, the collection normalized, and the articles reorganized within the collection.
Access the form for updating information on journals indexed in LILACS.
Category: Treatment of Periodicals in the LILACS Methodology
Whenever the (URL ) of your journal’s website changes, whether due to a change in institutional server, technological issues, or a change in the journal’s management company, the link to the full texts of the articles may break within the LILACS database, and access to the articles will be interrupted.
To resolve the issue, log into the FI-Admin system and correct the link to the full texts by replacing the old link with the new one.
Category: Treatment of Periodicals in the LILACS Methodology
The SeCS (Serials in Health Sciences) methodology defines that the printed version of the journal will be the main source of information for the purposes of verification and data confirmation. The online version is only adopted if the printed version is discontinued in the ISSN.
Furthermore, it is standard to use the abbreviation of journal titles according to the ISSN (International Standard Serial Number), and this abbreviation includes the differentiation between print and online versions. Therefore, the abbreviations of journals indexed in databases that adopt the LILACS methodology include this differentiation.
Category: Treatment of Periodicals in the LILACS Methodology
If your journal is currently indexed in LILACS, please consult the list of journals indexed in LILACS:
Or search for the abbreviated title on the Portal of scientific journals in Health Sciences:
Category: Treatment of Periodicals in the LILACS Methodology
The information provided in the ISSN record is considered. The country of publication considered is the country where the entity responsible for the journal is based. In case of multiple responsible institutions, the first one listed will be adopted.
Category: Treatment of Periodicals in the LILACS Methodology
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Indexing of Documents in the LILACS Methodology
The process involves synthesizing, describing, and representing the content of a health-related document by assigning controlled vocabulary descriptors from DeCS/MeSH, following the rules and guidelines of the LILACS indexing manual.
LILACS document indexing represents the content, facilitates understanding of the topic, and aids in retrieving documents registered in databases that adopt the LILACS Methodology.
The number of primary, secondary, pre-coded descriptors, and types of publication varies depending on the content of the document.
According to LILACS methodology, the maximum limits are set as follows:
- Primary descriptors: 6
- Secondary descriptors: 20
- Pre-coded descriptors: As many as necessary to describe the subject or historical period
- Types of publication: Generally one, and rarely more than 3 descriptors
This number of descriptors often applies to the indexing of articles with clinical research results, as LILACS methodology emphasizes specificity as one of the fundamental principles of its indexing process.
Documents with broader content coverage, such as books, clinical practice guidelines, and reviews, or those with shorter length such as editorials, typically have fewer descriptors applied. However, it is important to note that it is rare for a document to have only one primary descriptor.
Yes.
Editorials, biographies, review articles, clinical practice guidelines, books, and chapters that cover topics broadly are indexed with less depth.
Articles presenting clinical research results such as clinical trials, systematic reviews, case reports, health technology assessment studies, economic evaluations, and others are indexed more deeply, applying more descriptors and always performing coordinations.
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Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
Add a new issue by entering the supplement’s information. Create a new article, and in the data entry sheet, fill in the following:
Register a new issue, create an analytic (article/chapter), and complete the fields:
– Personal Author: leave blank
– Institutional Author: enter the name of the institution organizing the event.
– Title: fill in with the name of the event as it appears in the document. In some cases, only the event name appears, while in others, it may be “Abstracts of [event name]” or “Proceedings of [event name].”
Event/Project: Include the event’s details.
Examples:
- III Scientific Initiation Conference of INCA
- Abstracts of the III Congress of Students of the São Paulo Medical Association
- Abstracts of papers presented at the XXIV Brazilian Congress of Human Reproduction
- II National Conference on Science, Technology, and Innovation in Health: proceedings
- Proceedings of the VIII National Health Conference
– Keywords: leave blank
– Abstracts: leave blank
– Events: Include the event details. By clicking on the question mark to open the system help, note that the event name should be entered differently here. (Example: Symposium on Medicinal Plants in Brazil, 5).
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
When you see “Source” anywhere in the FI-Admin system, it means that you are creating or editing data for an entire book, non-conventional document, thesis, dissertation, or periodical (serial publication). When you see “Analytic,” you are creating or editing data for a part of a monographic-level document, such as a chapter, section of a book, thesis, non-conventional document, or periodical article if you are describing a journal.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
The volume should be recorded in Arabic numerals. If it consists of more than one number, enter the number for the first and the number for the last, separated by a slash (/).
Examples:
2
123
10/11
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
This field should be filled with the document’s publication date, not the date the issue was entered into the system. The date should be recorded in the language of the document, omitting prepositions, and months should be abbreviated according to the Month Abbreviation Table.
This is a mandatory field, and the abbreviation “n.d.” (no date) is no longer permitted, as documentation without a clear publication date is considered incomplete and poses a risk to data reliability.
Examples:
July-Dec. 1993
Sept. 1992
1993
Aug.-Oct. 1991
Nov. 1993-Jan. 1994
July 6, 2000
[1999?]Month Abbreviation Table
| Month | Spanish | French | English | Portuguese |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | ene. | janv. | Jan. | jan. |
| February | feb. | févr. | Feb. | fev. |
| March | mar. | mars | Mar. | mar. |
| April | abr. | avril | Apr. | abr. |
| May | mayo | mai | May | maio |
| June | jun. | juin | June | jun. |
| July | jul. | juil | July | jul. |
| August | ago. | aout | Aug. | ago. |
| September | sept. | sept. | Sept. | set. |
| October | oct. | oct. | Oct. | out. |
| November | nov. | nov. | Nov. | nov. |
| December | dic. | déc. | Dec. | dez. |
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
Entering information in this field depends on the completion of the Publication Date field. The normalized publication date should follow the ISO 8601:1988 standard, with the year in the first four digits and, if included in the publication date, the month in the next two digits and the day in the last two digits. When there is no month or day of publication, fill in the corresponding spaces with zeros. According to most publishing standards used by editors, scientific journals generally do not indicate a day of publication, only the month and year. If the date refers to a period, record the last date of the period.
Examples:
Publication Date: 2008, so Normalized Date: 20080000
Publication Date: Sept. 2009, so Normalized Date: 20090900
Publication Date: Jan.-Mar. 2010, so Normalized Date:
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
Enter the name of the person responsible for the intellectual content of the document, along with the institution to which they belong.
- Record the last name and first name separately.
- Enter the institutional affiliation hierarchically, from the most general to the most specific.
- Include the city of the affiliated institution.
- Include the country of the affiliated institution.
- Do not fill in the “Responsibility” field unless the person serves as an editor, compiler, coordinator, or organizer. (In the LILACS Methodology, leaving the responsibility field blank indicates the person is the author of the work.)
- Include a persistent identifier such as ORCID or another.
If there is more than one author, click “Insert Author” to register additional authors.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
The Personal Author field should be filled out as in bibliographic references: the author’s name is usually entered in reverse order, with the author’s last name followed by the first name.
Example:
Souza, João Paulo de
However, in cases where there are designations like Filho, Neto, or Júnior, include the preceding surname as well.
Example:
Souza Filho, João Paulo de
For authors’ names in Spanish, the middle surname should be recorded first, followed by the last surname.
Example:
Contreras Toro, Laura Beatriz
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
A period should be included after abbreviated surnames only when the abbreviation is between two names. If the abbreviated name is at the end of the field, do not include a period.
Example:
Souza, J. P
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
Author affiliation indicates the institution where the author works or studies at the time of conducting research and publishing the document.
The field should be filled with the institution’s name and its subdivisions, recorded in hierarchical order from largest to smallest, along with the city and country where the institution is located.
Affiliations should be written out in full, except when only the acronym (shortened form of the institution’s name) is given. If both the full name and the acronym are provided, prioritize the full name.
If the author is affiliated with more than one institution, only the first listed affiliation will be recorded, preferably one located in Latin America.
Do not include titles (doctor, master, etc.), positions (professor, head, coordinator, etc.), or mini-biographies in the Personal Author field.
If there is no institutional affiliation information or only titles like “doctor,” “master,” or “licensed by,” fill in the field with “s.af” (meaning “no affiliation”).
Example:
Affiliation – Institution Level 1: Universidade Federal de São Paulo
Affiliation – Institution Level 2: Escola Paulista de Medicina
Affiliation – Institution Level 3: Graduate Program in Medicine (Otolaryngology)
Affiliation – City: São Paulo
Affiliation – Country: Brazil
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
No. The institution’s name should only be recorded in the affiliation field if the author is still affiliated with it or if the work was conducted during the period of affiliation. It is the author’s responsibility to include this information in the document.
If the document only includes educational titles, such as “doctor,” “master,” or “licensed by,” the affiliation field should be filled with “s.af” (meaning “no affiliation”).
The institution’s name should only be recorded if there are indications of current affiliation, such as “doctoral candidate” or “master’s candidate,” as this indicates the author is still affiliated with the institution.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
If the author is affiliated with more than one institution, only one affiliation should be recorded in the appropriate field. Prioritize the first institution mentioned in the document or, preferably, the one located in Latin America.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
The expression “s.af” means “without affiliation” and is used to fill in the affiliation field when the document does not provide information about the institution to which the author is affiliated. There should be no spaces between the terms “s” and “af” and no period after the expression.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
No, if the affiliation field contains the expression “s.af,” then the country and city fields should not be filled in.
No, state abbreviations should not be recorded in the city field—only the names of the cities should be entered.
Example: Campinas
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
The words in the title and subtitle should be recorded according to grammatical rules, in lowercase, with only the first word of the title or proper nouns capitalized. Subtitles should be separated from the titles by a colon followed by a space.
Example:
For more encounters between editorial and institutional management: reflections on the Revista Enfermagem UERJ.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
Yes, if a document has titles in more than one language, all titles should be recorded in the sequence provided in the document. Create a new entry by clicking the “Insert Title” button and selecting the corresponding language for each title.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
Fill in this field only when the English-translated title is not present in the document. In such cases, the documentalist translates the title.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
No, information should be recorded in the corresponding fields according to grammatical rules. Therefore, only the first letters of each field, as well as proper nouns and acronyms, should be capitalized.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
The only field in the system where a period may be added after the data is the abstract field. No other field in the system should include a period.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
Yes, all keywords present in the document, in all languages, should be recorded in the system. Each keyword should be entered in a separate field, with the corresponding language indicated. To add more keyword fields, click on “Add Keyword.” It is recommended that keywords begin with a capital letter.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
If the author has not included keywords in the document, this field should not be filled. Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
Yes, all abstracts in the document, in all languages, should be recorded in the system, in the order presented in the document. To add more abstract fields, click on “Add Abstract.”
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
Providing full-text access contributes to equitable and universal access to health information, increases the visibility of the journal, and is a requirement of the LILACS database, which, since 2018, only indexes and maintains journals in its collection that offer free access to their articles.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
It should be filled out with the URL corresponding to the full text of the article or document being described. Include links for all available formats/extensions on the portal: HTML, PDF, XML, and others, in that order of priority, indicating the language of the document text.
Do not insert the link to the journal’s website or the issue’s table of contents.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
No, document links must always direct to the full text.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
In the full-text link field, should I include the link for all available languages in the document?
Yes, whenever there are versions of the document in other languages, all links should be included in the same record, specifying the language for each.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
There is a wide list of file formats (types and extensions) available in the system. For textual files, the usual formats are HTML, PDF, and XML (Extensible Markup Language) for the full text.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
No. It is always recommended to paste and edit the text in a text editor, as word joinings often occur due to line breaks, blank spaces, and strange codes and characters are included in accented words and formulas using Greek characters and mathematical symbols.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
Some characters, such as accented letters, mathematical symbols, or Greek letters, may not be recognized by the system when copied from the document and pasted into the system. Examples include quotation marks, the letter “ç,” percentage signs, alpha, beta, gamma, and letters with tilde, acute, or circumflex accents.
To prevent this, copy and paste the information into a plain text editor first, then cut and paste it into the corresponding fields.
Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
Visit https://lilacs.bvsalud.org and search by the journal’s abbreviated title using the prefix ta.
If you do not know the abbreviated title, search the list of journals indexed in LILACS.
Then, in the Publication Year Range cluster, enter the respective year and click the arrow button.
The search result will indicate the quantity and list the articles published. For example, it will show the articles published by Acta Paulista de Enfermagem in 2024. Category: Bibliographic Description according to LILACS Methodology
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LILACS Network
To become a Cooperating Center (CC) of LILACS and begin showcasing the scientific and technical production of your institution or thematic area, please review the compliance checklist at: How to become a Cooperating Center of the LILACS Network | | LILACS (bvsalud.org)
Important: The cooperation process is institutional and requires the support and commitment of the institution’s leadership. Activities and goals are established between the institution and the national/thematic coordinator of LILACS through a memorandum of understanding.
Category: LILACS Network
Access the BVS Network Directory and enter the name of your institution. If you can’t find it, also search using the initials that represent your institution.
If the information is outdated, request an update through the form.
Category: LILACS Network
Access the list of journals indexed in LILACS, locate the abbreviated title of your journal, and check its code in the Editor Code column.
Then access the VHL Network Directory to verify the name and contact information of the responsible professional.
Category: LILACS Network
If you are a Cooperating Center (CC) of the Brazilian Network of Information in Health Sciences and cooperate with the LILACS database, request the update directly via the form, and in the question ‘Indicate the name of the coordinator and the network to which you will contribute,’ provide BIREME/PAHO/WHO.
If you are a CC of other networks such as the Nursing VHL, Dentistry VHL, Fiocruz VHL, RIC VHL, or another network, please contact your coordinator to request the update of the data.
If you are unsure who the coordinator is for your area, access the VHL Network Portal and click on the name of the country present on the banner of this portal, then check the ongoing initiatives and active coordinators.”
Category: LILACS Network
To update the registration data for your journal indexed in LILACS, access the specific form and provide the updated information about the journal.
Category: LILACS Network
Whenever there are changes in the title, ISSN, article or portal URL link, email, responsible editor, responsible institution, frequency, or contact address of the journal.
Category: LILACS Network
Access the list of journals indexed in LILACS, find the abbreviated title of your journal, and check its code in the Editor Code column.
Category: LILACS Network
The contributions to the LILACS Network can be verified in two ways:
- Consulting the contribution statistics: This option is recommended for internal controls, allowing you to track the volume and frequency of contributions.
- Searching in the LILACS search interface: This approach is ideal for preparing reports that require an indication of the verification source, in addition to allowing access to bibliographic records for review and checking.
CONTRIBUTION STATISTICS
To access the contribution statistics, visit the following visualizations:
- LILACS – Contribution Statistics (in Spanish)
Each visualization has a specific purpose. Pay special attention to the “Contributions by Cooperating Center” and “Documents Created vs. Updated” visualizations. In all cases, select your Cooperating Center’s code in the filter.
- Bibliographic databases managed with LILACS Methodology in the FI-Admin system
For each visualization, select the LILACS database and your Cooperating Center’s code:
Other sources of information from the VHL (LILACS and VHL Databases)
Choose the “LILACS and VHL Databases” visualization.
Select the LILACS database, your Cooperating Center code, and all dates from the ‘Month, Year of Created Time’ filter.
The data labeled “Created by” refer to records created from scratch within the FI-Admin system. Records previously loaded by BIREME or by the editor of the indexed journal (LILACS-Express) and reviewed and indexed by the Cooperating Center are counted under “Updated by.”
SEARCH IN THE SEARCH INTERFACE
Another method is to search in the interface using prefixes and Boolean operators.
Important: There will always be discrepancies between the data generated from contribution statistics and the numbers from the search interface because, in the latter case, there is a delay caused by data processing and normalization.
If you would like to know the total contribution of your Cooperating Center (CC) code, type: cc: “your CC code.” Example: cc: “BR1.1”
If you want to search for contributions related to a specific year, month, or day, use the following prefixes and operators: cc: “your CC code” AND entry_date
Example:
- For a specific day: March 1, 2024
cc: “BR1.1” AND entry_date:20240301 - For a specific month: March 2024
cc: “BR1.1” AND entry_date:202403* - For a specific year: 2024
cc: “BR1.1” AND entry_date:2024
Category: LILACS Network
The technological infrastructure for contributing to LILACS and databases adopting the LILACS Methodology is entirely online and accessible via the internet.
The current systems include:
- Information Source Management System: FI-Admin for creating and editing bibliographic records using the LILACS Methodology;
- BIREME Accounts for network and user management;
- Serials in Health Sciences for abbreviated title control;
- DeCS/MeSH Vocabulary Service for thematic indexing of documents;
- Integrated search interface iAHx for database searches;
- Bibliographic records plugin for installation on WordPress-managed portals for database searching.
Any other system not mentioned above has been discontinued with no further updates planned. If you are using other systems, please contact us.
Category: LILACS Network
Every month, databases are updated with automated collections conducted by BIREME. These updates usually occur on Thursdays from 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM. If the system is down on a different day or time, please contact us to report difficulty accessing the system.
Category: LILACS Network
If you’re unable to log in to the FI-Admin system, click on “Forgot my password.”
If the issue persists, please request support through the Contact page.
Category: LILACS Network
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How to search
Example: “Post COVID-19 laryngeal dystonia report of two cases and possible pathophysiological explanation”
- Document Persistent Number (DOI). Use the “aid” prefix:
Example: aid:10.20396/bjos.v19i0.8657508
- Identifier Number within the LILACS database. Use the “id” prefix:
Example: id:biblio-1116543
id:lil-188896
Note that the ID always comes with a prefix like “lil-” or “biblio-“.
Always copy the ID including this prefix.
Category: How to search
To retrieve all publications by an author, make the most of the possibilities provided by the LILACS Methodology!
If you are using the simple search form, start like this:
- Search for variations of the author’s name and locate the curriculum link on platforms like Lattes, Google Scholar, LinkedIn, and other available academic profiles. Identify persistent author numbers, such as the ORCID.
Example: João Paulo Souza
- Full name: João Paulo Dias de Souza
Variations: Souza, João Paulo Dias de OR De Souza, João Paulo Dias
- Author’s adopted name: João Paulo Souza
Variations: Souza, João Paulo OR De Souza, João Paulo OR Souza, J P OR Souza, J. P
- Persistent numbers:
ORCID: 0000-0002-2288-4244
Web of Science ResearcherID: G-1982-2010
Lattes ID: 9159348039113345
2. Use the field prefixes “au” and “auid” and include all variations of the author’s name. (auid:(“0000-0002-2288-4244” OR “G-1982-2010” OR “13205307600”) OR au:(“Souza, João Paulo Dias de” OR “De Souza, João Paulo Dias” OR “Souza, João Paulo” OR “De Souza, João Paulo” OR “Souza, J P” OR “Souza, J. P”))
3. Test the result of the created search strategy, identify authors retrieved incorrectly, and remove false positive results:
“Diniz e Souza, João Paulo” OR “Souza, João Paulo do Vale” OR “Souza, João Paulo Casteleti de” OR ” Souza, João Paulo Francisco de” OR “Machado-de-Souza, João Paulo” OR “Souza, João Paulo Fernandes de” OR “Souza, João Paulo Sant Ana Santos de” OR “Souza, João Paulo Cechinel” OR ” Souza, João Paulo Pereira de” OR ” Souza, João Paulo M. de”
Proposed strategy:
(auid:(“0000-0002-2288-4244” OR “G-1982-2010” OR “13205307600”) OR au:(“Souza, João Paulo Dias de” OR “De Souza, João Paulo Dias” OR “Souza, João Paulo” OR “De Souza, João Paulo” OR “Souza, J P” OR “Souza, J. P”)) AND NOT au:(“Diniz e Souza, João Paulo” OR “Souza, João Paulo do Vale” OR “Souza, João Paulo Casteleti de” OR ” Souza, João Paulo Francisco de” OR “Machado-de-Souza, João Paulo” OR “Souza, João Paulo Fernandes de” OR “Souza, João Paulo Sant Ana Santos de” OR “Souza, João Paulo Cechinel” OR ” Souza, João Paulo Pereira de” OR ” Souza, João Paulo M. de”)
Category: How to search
There are two ways:
- Access the “Minha BVS” app and create search strategies according to your needs.
- Search in the search interface using the prefix “ta” followed by the abbreviated title of the journal you want to search, always in quotes.
Example: ta:”Acta Paul. Enferm. (Online)”
Copy and paste the generated link into the URL or save the link as a favorite.
Category: How to search
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User Questions
For your article to be published in LILACS, it must first be accepted and published in a journal that is already indexed in the LILACS database. Check the list of indexed journals to find suitable options.
Once you have selected a journal, visit the website to review the author guidelines of the chosen journal and submit your manuscript. Good luck!
Category: User Questions
According to LILACS selection criteria, doctoral theses in any field of Health Sciences can be registered in LILACS. Master’s dissertations in Public Health and Nursing are also accepted. Undergraduate or postgraduate monographs are not accepted. For other databases within the VHL Network, please contact the coordinators directly.
If your work meets the criteria, we recommend contacting a LILACS Network Cooperating Center responsible for its registration. Search the Network Directory to check if your institution is registered and contact them to request inclusion in LILACS.
It is recommended that the work is first deposited in the institutional repository before being referenced in LILACS.
Category: User Questions
The article might be in the registration phase by the editor or in the collection process by BIREME.
If other articles from the same volume or issue are already available in LILACS, please contact us to request a status check of the process.
Category: User Questions
To request a correction for an article published in LILACS, please contact the team responsible for the journal. All correction requests must be reviewed and confirmed by the journal, as the article description in LILACS is primarily based on the printed issue or, in its absence, on the journal’s portal.
Direct corrections in the LILACS database are not allowed. If the correction is due to an inaccuracy during the contribution phase to LILACS, please contact BIREME/PAHO/WHO.
Category: User Questions
You have several options to identify relevant keywords for your article:
- Use the DeCS Finder: Copy and paste your article’s title and abstract into the DeCS Finder to identify appropriate DeCS/MeSH descriptors.
- Search in DeCS/MeSH: Explore your article’s topic in DeCS/MeSH, read the scope notes, review related terms, and browse the hierarchy to find relevant descriptors.
- Analyze the LILACS database: Search title words in the LILACS database and examine the terms used to index similar articles.
Category: User Questions
To find a suitable journal to publish your article in the health field, follow these steps:
- Search the LILACS database: Use significant words from the title of your article to search the LILACS database. Note which journals or periodicals have already published on the topic.
- Explore related journals: Analyze journals that have already published articles on similar topics. Click on the abbreviated title of the reference found in LILACS and access the Scientific Journals Portal for more information about the journals.
Category: User Questions
According to the Cochrane Handbook (2021), Clarck (2001), and Brazil’s Ministry of Health (2021, 2012), conducting systematic reviews and meta-analyses requires searching specialized databases that cover relevant scientific and technical production for your review. Consider the following databases:
- LILACS (Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Literature): To obtain literature with scientific evidence contextualized for Latin America and the Caribbean;
- National and thematic databases from the region such as: BINACIS (Argentina), COL-NAL (Colombia), BDENF (Nursing), and others;
- African Index Medicus: To access scientific production related to Africa;
- PubMed and Embase: For comprehensive coverage of studies and publications globally.
Ensure that you include regional databases to guarantee that the reviewed literature is representative and relevant to the geographic context of your research.
Category: User Questions
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