  Multiple perspectives on the nonlinear processes of medical innovations can
be distinguished and combined using the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) of the
Medline database. Focusing on three main branches-"diseases," "drugs and
chemicals," and "techniques and equipment"-we use base maps and overlay
techniques to investigate the translations and interactions and thus to gain a
bibliometric perspective on the dynamics of medical innovations. To this end,
we first analyze the Medline database, the MeSH index tree, and the various
options for a static mapping from different perspectives and at different
levels of aggregation. Following a specific innovation (RNA interference) over
time, the notion of a trajectory which leaves a signature in the database is
elaborated. Can the detailed index terms describing the dynamics of research be
used to predict the diffusion dynamics of research results? Possibilities are
specified for further integration between the Medline database, on the one
hand, and the Science Citation Index and Scopus (containing citation
information), on the other.
