Systems for searching the medical literature have never been neutral retrieval tools; they encode assumptions about relevance, quality, authority, and use.
The transition from printed indexes to MEDLARS, MEDLINE, PubMed, citation indexing, and evidence-based search filters progressively changed not only access to information but also research visibility and clinical decision-making.
Commercial actors, including abstracting services, journal publishers, and the pharmaceutical industry, have long influenced what information was curated, disseminated, and prioritized.
AI-assisted retrieval extends a longstanding history of selective mediation in medicine, making historical literacy essential for clinicians who increasingly rely on algorithmically ranked knowledge.
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This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.
