Overview
ISO/TS 17938:2014 - Health informatics: Semantic network framework of traditional Chinese medicine language system defines a semantic-network structure for the Traditional Chinese Medicine Language System (TCMLS). The Technical Specification establishes semantic types, semantic relations, minimal coding rules and terminology principles to support unified semantic modelling, standardized TCM concepts, and improved natural language processing (NLP) in information systems. The document is the first edition and is intended as a starting point for implementing TCMLS in health informatics and information exchange.
Key topics and technical requirements
- Semantic network structure: A modelling framework that categorizes TCM concepts into nodes (semantic types) and links (semantic relations). The current release documents 96 semantic types and 58 semantic relations.
- Semantic types: Nodes are grouped into two major categories - entity and event - with hierarchical classification and property definitions. Examples include viscera and bowels, qi, blood, acupuncture point, medicinal substances, and TCM theories.
- Semantic relationships: Relationships connect semantic types and are classified as hierarchy (is-a) or correlation (associative) to form the network skeleton.
- Terminology principles: Rules for naming and definition include marking conventional-medical terms that differ in TCM, using standardized terms for definitions, hierarchical and property-based concept expression, and bilingual (Chinese and English) concept entries.
- Minimal coding: Provides basic coding guidance for representing the semantic network structure to support machine processing and interoperability.
- Supporting annexes: Informative annexes describe the semantic type and relationship structures for implementation reference.
Practical applications
- Improve NLP and automated processing of TCM clinical texts, research literature, and electronic health records (EHRs).
- Enable semantic interoperability for TCM data exchange between hospitals, registries, and research institutions.
- Support development of TCM terminology dictionaries, concept repositories, and knowledge graphs used in clinical decision support and analytics.
- Provide a conceptual framework for coding and mapping TCM concepts to other terminologies or ontologies (e.g., for integration with conventional medicine data).
- Serve as a blueprint for vendors implementing TCM modules in EHRs, mobile health apps, and clinical research platforms.
Who would use this standard
- Health informatics professionals, terminology specialists and standards developers
- TCM researchers, clinicians and educators working on digital knowledge representation
- EHR vendors, NLP engineers and knowledge-graph developers integrating TCM content
- Translation and localization teams standardizing bilingual TCM terminologies
Related standards and references
- ISO/TC 215 (Health informatics) - committee responsible for the document
- WHO International Standard Terminologies on Traditional Medicine - referenced for several term definitions
- UMLS and other biomedical terminology frameworks (referenced conceptually in semantic type design)
Keywords: ISO/TS 17938:2014, TCMLS, traditional Chinese medicine, semantic network, semantic types, semantic relations, health informatics, TCM terminology, natural language processing, interoperability.