Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-ndw9j Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-07T19:19:59.927Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The European Paediatric Cardiac Code Long List: structure and function

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 August 2008

Rodney C. G. Franklin*
Affiliation:
Harefield Site, Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Trust, Harefield, Middlesex, UK
*
Dr Rodney CG Franklin, Paediatric Cardiologist, Harefield Site, Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Trust, Harefield, MiddlesexUB9 6JH, UK

Extract

The Long List is a comprehensive hierarchical system of coding and classification for the diagnosis and treatment of heart disease. Although originally aimed at the clinician or surgeon treating heart disease first appearing in infancy or childhood, it has now been enlarged to encompass abnormalities first diagnosed in fetal life, as well as heart disease first acquired during adult life. There are a total of 3,876 individual terms. For the most part, these are mutually exclusive and unambivalent, given the constraints of clinical ambiguities and differing cultures of practice. In addition, there are 564 qualifier terms. These provide additional detail to individual or multiple items, such as fine anatomical detail, the severity of a lesion, the size of an interposition shunt or conduit, or the material used to close a septal defect. Finally, there are a further 341 duplicate diagnostic or procedural terms included in the List to aid its use, as some terms may have relevance in multiple areas. For example, Hypoplastic left heart syndrome is found under congenital anomalies of the left ventricle as well as in the section dealing with the aortic valve. Thus, altogether the listing consists of 4,781 items. The System is hierarchically arranged, with a major division between diagnostic and therapeutic subhierarchies. The developmental history of the Long List has been published previously, and is detailed earlier in this supplement.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2000

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Franklin, RCG, Anderson, RH, Daniëls, , Elliott, M, Gewillig, MHML, Ghisla, R, Krogmann, ON, Ulmer, HE, Stocker, FP. The European Paediatric Cardiac Code. Cardiol Young 1999; 9: 633–57.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van, Praagh R. The segmental approach to diagnosis in congenital heart disease. Birth Defects 1972; 8: 423.Google Scholar
Shinebourne, EA, Macartney, FJ, Anderson, RH. Sequential chamber localisation: the logical approach to diagnosis in congenital heart disease. Br Heart J 1976; 38: 327340.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Anderson, R, Macartney, FJ, Shinebourne, EA, Tynan, M. Terminology In: Anderson, R, Macartney, FJ, Shinebourne, EA, Tynan, M (Eds): Paediatric Cardiology Volume 1. London: Churchill Livingstone 1987: Chap 3: 6582.Google Scholar
Anderson, RH. How should we optimally describe complex congenitally malformed hearts? Annals of Thoracic Surgery 1996; 62: 710716.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Van, Praagh R, Plett, JA, Van Praagh, S. Single ventricle, Pathology, embryology, terminology and classification. Herz 1979; 4: 113150.Google Scholar
Rao, PS. Classification of tricuspid atresia. In: Rao, PS (Ed): Tricuspid Atresia (2nd Ed). New York: Futura Publishing Company 1992: Chap 5, pp 5979.Google Scholar
Gittengerger-de Groot, AC, Sauer, U, Oppenheimer-Dekker, A, Quaegebeur, J. Coronary arterial anatomy in transposition of the great arteries: a morphological study. Pediatr Cardiol 1983; 4 (Suppl 1): 1524.Google Scholar