NUMEDCODE: A Cumulative, Compact, Computer-Compatible Medical Nomenclature is Both Necessary and Feasible

¹ Director, Bioengineering Program; Professor of Bioengineering, Professor of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Washington, Seattle

This report is designed to demonstrate the feasibility of a totally new medical nomenclature which is cumulative, flexible, logical, consistent, and computer-compatible. An optimal system based on these principles would require careful and detailed elaboration by a group of experts. One obvious choice for leadership in this process would be some arm of the Public Health Service such as the National Institutes of Health. Utter chaos would result if such a system were modified at the whim of individuals. The organization responsible for developing it would have to retain firm control to preserve and to judiciously modify it as new scientific discoveries dictate.