Table 3.
Selected example errors from each resource
| Resource | Medication (RxCUI) | Disease (ICD9) | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| RxNorm | Captopril (1998) | Rheumatoid arthritis (714.0) | The indication was supported by a small case series in 198427 but has not been widely accepted thereafter |
| Isosorbide (6057) | Esophageal reflux (530.81) | Isosorbide can be used for esophageal spasm, but may cause reflux | |
| MedlinePlus | Sildenafil (136411) | Other malaise and fatigue (780.79) | NLP falsely identified a concept that is irrelevant to an indication: ‘Sildenafil is used to improve the ability to exercise in people with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH; high blood pressure in the vessels carrying blood to the lungs, causing shortness of breath, dizziness, and tiredness)’ |
| Dexmethylphenidate (352372) | Other specified visual disturbances (368.8) | Mismatched disease concept by NLP: ‘Dexmethylphenidate is used as part of a treatment program to control symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; more difficulty focusing,…) in adults and children’ | |
| Wikipedia | Ciprofloxacin (2551) | Cystic fibrosis (277.0) | However, the fluoroquinolones are licensed to treat lower respiratory infections in children with cystic fibrosis in the UK |
| Guaifenesin (5032) | Asthma (493) | Guaifenesin is claimed to be effective in the treatment of the thickened bronchial mucosa characteristic of asthma | |
| SIDER 2 | Dobutamine (3616) | Atrial fibrillation (427.31) | Contraindication/side effect |
| Ephedrine (3966) | Hypertension NOS (401.9) | Contraindication/side effect |
NOS, not otherwise specified; NLP, natural language processing; RxCUI, RxNorm concept unique identifier; SIDER, Side Effect Resource.