Abstract
The terminology of NPU (nomenclature for properties and units) aims at describing properties examined in clinical laboratories for a patient. It was originally jointly approved in 1966 by IUPAC and by the International Federation of Clinical Chemistry (IFCC) and covers multiple disciplines in the field of clinical laboratory sciences, including clinical allergology, clinical chemistry, clinical haematology, clinical immunology and blood banking, clinical microbiology, clinical pharmacology, molecular biology and genetics, reproduction and fertility, thrombosis and haemostasis, and toxicology. The NPU terminology adheres to international standards of metrology and of terminology, in particular the International System of Quantities (ISQ) and International System of Units (SI), the International Vocabulary of Metrology (VIM), and also to ‘An outline for a vocabulary of nominal properties and examinations – basic and general concepts and associated terms,’ recently prepared on behalf of the IFCC-IUPAC Committee-Subcommittee on Nomenclature for Properties and Units. The present document recalls the definitions of the concepts used to express a property of a patient, regarded as a system. The aim is to promote by this comprehensive summary the proper NPU terminology for reliable exchange of patient examination data. The use of this syntax and of SI units enables the translation of these descriptions into other languages without loss of meaning or accuracy. The NPU format is also well adapted for comparative and epidemiological studies. More information will be found in the upcoming 2nd edition of the Compendium of Terminology and Nomenclature of Properties in Clinical Laboratory Sciences, the IUPAC and IFCC ‘Silver Book’, and in the recently published ‘Properties and units in the clinical laboratory sciences. Part XXIII. The NPU terminology, principles, and implementation: A user’s guide (IUPAC Technical Report)’ (DOI:10.1351/PAC-REP-11-05-03).
Best Practices in Undergraduate Clinical Laboratory Science Online Education and Effective Use of Educational Technology Tools
