https://search.proz.com/forum/medical/339317-why_was_medilexicon_closed_and_are_there_valid_alternatives.html
This site uses cookies. Some of these cookies are essential to the operation of the site, while others help to improve your experience by providing insights into how the site is being used. For more information, please see the ProZ.com privacy policy.
Cookie settings

Translation - art & business » Medical »
Why was MediLexicon closed and are there valid alternatives?
Thread poster: Gaetano Silvestri Campagnano
Gaetano Silvestri Campagnano
Gaetano Silvestri Campagnano  Identity Verified
Italy
Local time: 18:05
Member (2005)
English to Italian
+ ...
Dec 9, 2019

I was quite puzzled in reading about the recent closing of MediLexicon, the medical website very famous and useful for its comprehensive list of medical abbreviations.

The strangest thing is that the rather sad and enigmatic farewell message found in place of the website does not explain any reason for the closure, but just reminds the 16-year history of MediLexicon and its progressive growth, pointing out that "it is time to say goodbye" and ending with hearty thanks to all the use... See more
I was quite puzzled in reading about the recent closing of MediLexicon, the medical website very famous and useful for its comprehensive list of medical abbreviations.

The strangest thing is that the rather sad and enigmatic farewell message found in place of the website does not explain any reason for the closure, but just reminds the 16-year history of MediLexicon and its progressive growth, pointing out that "it is time to say goodbye" and ending with hearty thanks to all the users, as can be seen here:

https://www.medilexicon.com/announcement

So I would like to ask if anyone knows the mysterious reasons for MediLexicon's closing, and, especially, if anybody knows a good alternative to that very useful website.

Indeed, until now, I have not found a similar resource, not even in the common acronym websites, which are not so detailed regarding the medical field.

[Modificato alle 2019-12-09 01:33 GMT] ▲ Collapse
 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 18:05
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
@Gaetano Dec 9, 2019

Gaetano Silvestri Campagnano wrote:
I was quite puzzled in reading about the recent closing of MediLexicon, the medical website very famous and useful for its comprehensive list of medical abbreviations.


Yes, it's odd. I could not find the company in the UK company register, so maybe the company came to an end? Perhaps you can use some of the old contact information to get a hold of them and find out what happened: https://web.archive.org/web/20180306013801/http://www.medilexicon.com/contact

I've never heard of MediLexicon but it looks like it was quite a comprehensive resource. Perhaps some of the content is also available on other web sites. From what I can see, one could search the following things at MediLexicon: abbreviations (200 000 terms), dictionary (between 38 000 and 254 000 terms), medicine names (number of entries unknown), equipment (2700 terms), hospitals (14 000 entries), and ICD codes (number of entries unknown).

Abbreviations
The site claims between 200 000 and 230 000 abbreviations, apparently updated daily, but I don't know what their main source of abbreviations were. Does anyone else know of a very large resource of medical abbreviations?

Dictionaries
The site states that their dictionary search was powered by Stedmans. I'm not sure which of Stedmans' dictionaries were searched via MediLexicon, but one can subscribe to Stedmans' dictionaries online for a hefty annual fee:

https://stedmansonline.com/
Medical dictionary (107 000 terms): $63 per year
Nursing dictionary (56 000 terms): $59 per year
Dental dictionary (16 000 terms): $53 per year
Abridged medical dictionary a.k.a. "Pocket" (contains a selection of terms from the Medical, Nursing and Dental dictionaries) (38 000 terms): $32 per year
Abbreviations (75 000 entries): $51 per year
(all prices are for the first year, thereafter 40% discount)

The Stedmans web site does have a search function, but the search results don't tell you anything useful about the search term -- it only tells you in which of their dictionaries the term is found.

Medicines
The site says that the medicine search was powered by HealthLine, but the URL is stale (http://www.healthline.com/directory/drugs ) and I was unable to find a list of medicines on the current HealthLine web site.

Equipment
The site listed descriptions of 2750 items of equipment, and the entire list (and the descriptions) are available on the Wayback Machine:
https://web.archive.org/web/20180303193406/http://www.medilexicon.com/equipment

Hospitals
The site claims to have had a listing of 14 000 hospitals, including name, address, phone number, URL, e-mail address and a description for each hospital.

ICD Codes
The site does not mention how many ICD codes one could search, but I'm sure these codes can be searched elsewhere on the web, right?

Maria Rivera-Ayers
 


To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator:

Moderator(s) of this forum
Natalie[Call to this topic]

You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request »

Why was MediLexicon closed and are there valid alternatives?


Translation news
» From the Cat in the Box to the Thought in the Cloud
(0 comments)
» Circles of intelligence: How AI is redefining human creativity
(0 comments)
» Why you should read translated books — here are 3 to check out now
(0 comments)


Forum rules
Help and orientation




Wordfast Pro
Translation Memory Software for Any Platform

Exclusive discount for ProZ.com users! Save over 13% when purchasing Wordfast Pro through ProZ.com. Wordfast is the world's #1 provider of platform-independent Translation Memory software. Consistently ranked the most user-friendly and highest value

Buy now! »
TM-Town
Manage your TMs and Terms ... and boost your translation business

Are you ready for something fresh in the industry? TM-Town is a unique new site for you -- the freelance translator -- to store, manage and share translation memories (TMs) and glossaries...and potentially meet new clients on the basis of your prior work.

More info »