LOGICAL OBSERVATION IDENTIFIER NAMES AND CODES (LOINC) DATABASE - A PUBLIC USE SET OF CODES AND NAMES FOR ELECTRONIC REPORTING OF CLINICAL LABORATORY TEST-RESULTS

Many laboratories use electronic message standards to transmit results to their clients, If all laboratories used the Same ''universal'' set of test identifiers, electronic transmission of results would be grea tly simplified, The Logical Observation Identifier Names and Codes (LO INC) database aims to be such a code system, covering at least 98% of the average laboratory's tests. The LOINC database should be of intere st to hospitals, clinical laboratories, doctors' offices, state health departments, governmental healthcare providers, third-party payers, o rganizations involved in clinical trials, and quality assurance and ut ilization reviewers, The fifth release of the LOINC database, containi ng codes, names, and synonyms for similar to 6300 test observations, i s now available on the Internet for public use, Here we describe the L OINC database, the methods used to produce it, and how it may be obtai ned.