Using patterns of medical treatment codes to determine when further medical expertise is called for

摘要

A technique for using ICD-9 and CPT codes in an individual's medical records to determine a particular manner in which a medical condition of an individual should be dealt with. The medical records are analyzed for a pattern of the medical treatment codes that is associated with the particular manner of dealing with the medical condition and an indication of the pattern's existence is provided. In one embodiment, the analysis is used to determine whether and what kind of specialist is required. The analysis may be performed when the diagnosis of the condition is uncertain, when the treatment of the condition is uncertain, when the treatment has resulted in further problems, or when the patient is not responding to the treatment.