Does anyone know if there are specific lab tests that are performed only post mortem, such as during an autopsy? If so, is there a way to get a list of the LOINC codes for those? I’m finding only post mortem imaging items at this point.
Thank you.
Robin Tardif
Ontologist
Hello Robin,
I searched by keywords autopsy and forensics and did not come up with laboratory assays. I don’t believe they have been requested before. If you have specific lab tests in mind, I would be happy to help you formulate a submission. Just curious, if the bolded word “only” in your message indicates biomarkers or chemistries not performed on live patients?
Thank you for the question,
Pam
Hi Pam.
Thank you for your response. I was able to pull a list using the words ‘dead’, ‘death’, and ‘post mortem’. I was mostly interested in lab tests, but I was able to get what I needed. And yes, I bolded the word ‘only’ because I wanted tests that are not performed on live patients.
I work for a company, Integra Connect, that has, and is expanding, a database of de-identified oncology patient information for use by providers, pharmaceutical companies, R&D companies, etc., to research oncology treatment plans. The data can be pulled down to the patient level, but the data can in no way lead back to a specific patient (HIPAA). So, we want to make sure that a user cannot identify a patient as deceased, since general location information is also available. By obtaining a list of LOINC codes that pertain to deceased patients, we can exclude those as part of our de-identification process.
Thank you for your help with this.
Robin