Bosma Madeleen, Cobbaert Christa
Department of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Clin Chem Lab Med. 2025 Apr 16;63(8):1486-1493. doi: 10.1515/cclm-2025-0152. Print 2025 Jul 28.
Laboratory medicine is faced with rapid developments in data exchange, secondary use of data and artificial intelligence. Safe exchange of laboratory data requires a suitable terminology standard. NPU, LOINC and SNOMED CT are increasingly used for this purpose, but none of these terminology standards can currently accommodate safe exchange across the full spectrum of conventional laboratory data. Furthermore, rapid technological advances in, amongst others, the 'omics' area will enforce a shift towards precision diagnostics. These emerging technologies demand an appropriate and future-proof terminology standard. Given the current and future challenges in laboratory terminologies, we here present a concept for digital metrology in laboratory medicine. Terminology standards used in laboratory medicine should be adjusted to the current state of science to allow safe data exchange and interpretation. Essential test information entails the full spectrum of pre-pre-analysis to post-post-analysis. Major improvements needed include sufficient coding detail for the molecular form of the measurand and information on metrological traceability. Furthermore, especially given the advances in precision diagnostics, it will become essential to indicate interrelationships between measurands. Herefore, integration with established taxonomies would allow improved identification of interrelationships between measurands and linkage with scientific information for multidisciplinary data science. Hence, laboratory data can further gain in specificity and value. The time has come to lay the basis for safe data exchange in the era of precision diagnostics, with a global focus. A consensus for digital metrology in laboratory medicine will be essential to move forward with health data exchange within Europe and beyond.
检验医学面临着数据交换、数据二次利用和人工智能方面的快速发展。实验室数据的安全交换需要合适的术语标准。NPU、LOINC和SNOMED CT越来越多地用于此目的，但目前这些术语标准都无法适应常规实验室数据全范围的安全交换。此外，“组学”领域等的快速技术进步将促使向精准诊断转变。这些新兴技术需要一个合适且面向未来的术语标准。鉴于实验室术语当前和未来面临的挑战，我们在此提出检验医学数字计量学的概念。检验医学中使用的术语标准应根据当前科学状况进行调整，以实现安全的数据交换和解读。基本检验信息涵盖从分析前到分析后的全范围。需要的主要改进包括测量物分子形式的足够编码细节以及计量溯源信息。此外，特别是考虑到精准诊断的进展，指明测量物之间的相互关系将变得至关重要。因此，与既定分类法整合将有助于更好地识别测量物之间的相互关系，并与多学科数据科学的科学信息建立联系。从而，实验室数据可以进一步提高特异性和价值。现在是时候以全球视野为精准诊断时代的安全数据交换奠定基础了。检验医学数字计量学的共识对于推动欧洲及其他地区的健康数据交换至关重要。
