LOINC Mapping Experiences in Italy: The Case of Friuli-Venezia Giulia Region

Maria Chiaravalloti, Grazia Serratore, Fabio Del Ben, Agostino Steffan

2025

Abstract

Interoperability in healthcare requires accurate data exchange and interpretation across systems, making standard terminologies essential for achieving semantic interoperability. This paper presents the approach adopted by the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region in Italy to implement LOINC, the most widely used standardized coding system for laboratory tests, into the electronic Laboratory Reports of five hospitals. Mapping was conducted manually by physicians using RELMA, supported by training and guidance from LOINC Italy experts. The validation process involved a dual-review procedure to ensure semantic accuracy but also to face issues, such as implicit or incorrect information in local catalogues and the complexity of some specialties. Collaboration among clinical staff, LOINC experts, and IT professionals proved essential in overcoming these issues. As a result, over 7,000 local tests were mapped to LOINC, and 675 new codes for unrepresented concepts were requested, thus creating a regional LOINC knowledge base. This experience highlights the importance of training, support, and integrated management in adopting LOINC, as these elements are crucial for a standardization process that enhances data traceability, minimizes errors, and supports semantic interoperability. Additionally, this experience could be an example for other healthcare systems aiming to standardize laboratory tests and achieve meaningful data exchange.

Paper Citation

in Harvard Style

Chiaravalloti M., Serratore G., Del Ben F. and Steffan A. (2025). LOINC Mapping Experiences in Italy: The Case of Friuli-Venezia Giulia Region. In Proceedings of the 18th International Joint Conference on Biomedical Engineering Systems and Technologies - Volume 2: HEALTHINF; ISBN 978-989-758-731-3, SciTePress, pages 959-967. DOI: 10.5220/0013380800003911

in Bibtex Style

@conference{healthinf25,
author={Maria Chiaravalloti and Grazia Serratore and Fabio Del Ben and Agostino Steffan},
title={LOINC Mapping Experiences in Italy: The Case of Friuli-Venezia Giulia Region},
booktitle={Proceedings of the 18th International Joint Conference on Biomedical Engineering Systems and Technologies - Volume 2: HEALTHINF},
year={2025},
pages={959-967},
publisher={SciTePress},
organization={INSTICC},
doi={10.5220/0013380800003911},
isbn={978-989-758-731-3},
}

in EndNote Style

TY - CONF

JO - Proceedings of the 18th International Joint Conference on Biomedical Engineering Systems and Technologies - Volume 2: HEALTHINF
TI - LOINC Mapping Experiences in Italy: The Case of Friuli-Venezia Giulia Region
SN - 978-989-758-731-3
AU - Chiaravalloti M.
AU - Serratore G.
AU - Del Ben F.
AU - Steffan A.
PY - 2025
SP - 959
EP - 967
DO - 10.5220/0013380800003911
PB - SciTePress