Tuesday, 9 August 2016

ePhenotyping for Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm in the Electronic Medical Records and Genomics (eMERGE) Network

Electronic health records(EHRs) capture a large volume of clinical and physiologic data, and present a valuable resource for research. The “electronic Medical Records and Genomics” (eMERGE) Network was organized by the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) in 2007 to develop, disseminate, and apply approaches to combine DNA biorepositories with electronic medical record(EMR) systems for large-scale, high-throughput genetic research with the ultimate goal of returning genomic testing results to patients in a clinical care setting. 
Opinion on Defense Management

To accomplish these goals in the eMERGE Network an important first step is to develop robust algorithms, so called “ePhenotyping” tools, to identify cases and controls directly from the EHR for studies on specific diseases and traits. eMERGE ePhenotypes are developed byone or more primary sites, validated at secondary sites and verified at all other sites that implement them. The results of this rigorous development effort are accurate, robust algorithms that may be used at other sites outside the eMERGE Network.


An abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is a chronic progressively expanding dilatation of the abdominal aorta below the renal arteries and above the iliac artery bifurcation. The Society of Vascular Surgery guidelines define an AAA as a dilatation greater than 3 cm in diameter. Most dilatations expand to exceed the threshold over time and there is an increased risk of rupture with catastrophic consequences when the diameter exceeds 5.5 cm.


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