A definition is a textual description applied to some SNOMED CT concepts that provides additional information about the intended meaning or usage of the concept. Definitions are not mandated and are considered for addition on a case-by-case basis, and if required, to differentiate a concept from its related concepts.
Adding a definition to a concept provides additional clarity on its context of use. It enhances the definition provided by the modeled relationships whereby a term can be sufficiently defined logically, but the words, which is how many look for and interpret meaning, may imply more or less specificity.
Definitions should be written as complete sentences beginning with a capital letter, ending with a period and with a case sensitivity of CS for entire term case sensitive; this is default for case sensitivity in DEF status.
For example,
- The definition for the concept 11530004 | Brittle diabetes mellitus (finding)| is:
Frequent, clinically significant fluctuations in blood glucose levels both above and below levels expected to be achieved by available therapies.
The definition should never be contradictory to the modeling.
The example, raised blood pressure, is a commonly used phrase which in itself is ambiguous. Raised can mean higher than a previous measurement, on the high side of normal range, or above reference range. Because of that ambiguity, a full definition created by logical model may be impossible, so a text definition could be used to encourage consistent use of the term.
A text definition should be considered where a concept references the obscure or unusual.
In summary, if a term may be interpreted in multiple ways, but is intended to mean only one way in SNOMED CT, it needs a definition. However, ultimate source of truth for meaning remains with the FSN.
- URLs that point to definition sources are unacceptable.
- External references, such as ISBN and PubMed identifiers, are not allowed in SNOMED CT concept definitions.
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