How to Convert Embase PDFs to EPUB — Read Biomedical Research on Kindle or Kobo
Embase is the gold standard for pharmaceutical and drug safety literature searches — required by regulatory agencies (EMA, FDA) for systematic reviews. When conducting a literature review in Embase, converting papers to EPUB makes reading dozens of full-text articles far more comfortable on any e-reader.
What is Embase?
Embase (embase.com), operated by Elsevier, is the premier biomedical database for pharmaceutical research:
- 35+ million records from 8,500+ journals
- Stronger pharmaceutical and drug safety coverage than PubMed
- EMTREE controlled vocabulary for precise compound and disease searching
- Mandatory for EMA and many FDA systematic review guidelines
- Conference abstracts coverage (important for pharmacovigilance)
- Drug adverse effects (SIDE) database integration
Accessing Embase
Embase requires an institutional subscription. Access via:
- Medical school or teaching hospital library portal
- Pharmaceutical company or CRO internal database access
- Institution VPN → embase.com direct login
If your institution doesn't have Embase, PubMed (free) covers significant overlap. For systematic reviews specifically requiring Embase, contact your library — temporary access or document delivery services are often available.
Finding and downloading PDFs via Embase
- Search Embase using EMTREE terms or free text
- Click any result to open the abstract record
- Click Full Text or Article at ScienceDirect (for Elsevier journals)
- On the publisher page, download the PDF
- For open-access papers, look for Free full text at PMC — links directly to PubMed Central
Tip: install Unpaywall in your browser — it automatically shows free legal versions of papers as you browse Embase results.
Converting to EPUB
- Go to pdf2epub.toolkit.bot
- Upload the PDF
- Wait ~30 seconds
- Download the EPUB and transfer to your e-reader
During a systematic review, you may read 50–200 full papers. Converting each to EPUB and reading on a Kindle or Kobo is significantly more comfortable than reading on a laptop screen for hours.
Embase vs PubMed for literature searching
| Embase | PubMed | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Subscription | Free |
| Records | 35M+ (8,500 journals) | 35M+ (MEDLINE + others) |
| Pharmaceutical coverage | Excellent — EMTREE drug thesaurus | Good, less precise for drugs |
| Conference abstracts | Yes — major strength | Limited |
| European journals | Strong | Weaker than Embase |
| Regulatory requirement | Required for EMA/FDA SRs | Not sufficient alone for regulatory SRs |
| Open access PDFs | Via ScienceDirect + PMC links | Direct PMC links |
Frequently asked questions
What is Embase?
Embase is Elsevier's biomedical and pharmaceutical database, indexing over 35 million records from 8,500+ journals. It is particularly strong in pharmacology, drug research, and clinical medicine — it covers more drug-related literature than PubMed and is mandatory for regulatory agency systematic reviews (EMA, FDA guidelines recommend Embase for drug safety searches). Embase is especially valued for its EMTREE thesaurus, which enables precise controlled vocabulary searching for pharmaceutical compounds.
How does Embase differ from PubMed?
PubMed is free and covers primarily NIH-funded and MEDLINE-indexed biomedical literature. Embase is a subscription database that covers more journals (especially European journals and conference abstracts) and has stronger pharmaceutical coverage. For systematic reviews on drug safety, pharmacovigilance, or drug efficacy, Embase covers literature that PubMed misses — which is why most Cochrane Reviews and regulatory systematic reviews require searching both. Embase includes its own full-text links via Elsevier's ScienceDirect platform.
How do I access Embase?
Embase (embase.com) requires an institutional subscription. Access via your university or hospital library portal, VPN, or Shibboleth login. Medical schools, teaching hospitals, and pharmaceutical companies typically have Embase access. If your institution doesn't have access, PubMed covers much of the same content for free. For systematic reviews requiring Embase specifically, university libraries can usually grant temporary access or interlibrary cooperation.
How do I download a PDF found via Embase?
In Embase, click any search result to open the abstract. Click 'Full Text' or 'Article in Press' to go to the Elsevier ScienceDirect page (for Elsevier journals) or the publisher's website. Download the PDF from there — free if your institution has access. For open-access papers, the PDF is free regardless. Embase also shows PubMed Central links when available — click 'Free full text at PMC' for immediate free access.
Can I export Embase search results to a reference manager?
Yes — Embase exports to most reference managers via RIS or CSV. Click 'Export' on the search results page → choose your format → import into Zotero, Mendeley, EndNote, or Paperpile. After exporting, use the reference manager to track which papers you've obtained PDFs for. Convert each PDF to EPUB at pdf2epub.toolkit.bot for comfortable e-reader reading during your literature review process.