ECLed- a tool supporting the effective use of the SNOMED CT Expression Constraint Language

Area of Science:

• Medical Informatics
• Clinical Data Management
• SNOMED CT Ontology

Background:

• Expression Constraint Language (ECL) is vital for SNOMED CT semantic queries.
• ECL's complexity hinders adoption in clinical research and analytics.
• Non-experts face challenges with ECL syntax and the SNOMED CT Concept Model.

Purpose of the Study:

• Introduce ECLed, a web-based tool to simplify ECL query creation.
• Enable non-technical users to create and modify ECL queries.
• Facilitate querying of SNOMED CT-coded patient data.

Main Methods:

• Developed ECLed based on detailed functional and non-functional requirements.
• Integrated a processed SNOMED CT Concept Model and FHIR terminology services for validation.
• Utilized a modular architecture with Angular frontend and Spring Boot backend via RESTful interfaces.

Main Results:

• ECLed demonstrated high usability in user surveys.
• Technical validation confirmed reliable generation and editing of complex ECL queries.
• Successfully integrated into the DaWiMed research platform, improving clinical analysis workflows.

Conclusions:

• ECLed abstracts ECL syntax and SNOMED CT Concept Model complexity.
• Provides a user-friendly interface for both technical and non-technical users.
• Optimizes clinical research and data analysis workflows with potential for further integration.