For over three decades, LOINC has served as the global cornerstone for health data interoperability because of the dedication, expertise, and feedback of this incredible community. As the pace of clinical innovation accelerates and the demand for real-time data exchange grows, we recognize that our internal processes must also evolve to better align with your needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I need to modify my internal processes to implement monthly releases?
The short answer is: you probably don’t need to change as much as you think. The same release artifacts (the CSV files, documentation, and release notes) will continue to be delivered in the same format. What changes is the frequency and size of each release. Each monthly release will be significantly smaller than what you’re used to, so the review and validation effort per release should be proportionally less.
If your current process involves a large-scale review and integration effort timed around two releases per year, you may want to shift toward a lighter, more routine update cycle. You might also consider deciding which releases are relevant to your use case and adopting only those, rather than feeling obligated to implement every one. Organizations that already have automated or semi-automated ingestion pipelines for LOINC updates will likely find the transition seamless. If your process is more manual, this may be a good opportunity to invest in automation that can make frequent updates routine rather than burdensome.
Will I need to implement every LOINC release, or can I skip some?
You are not required to implement every release. Each release is cumulative, meaning it contains the full LOINC dataset, not just the changes since the last release. So if you skip a few releases and then implement a later one, you will still have a complete, up-to-date version of LOINC. You won’t miss anything by skipping intermediate releases.
That said, how often you choose to implement depends on your needs. Some organizations may want to stay current with every release, particularly if they are tracking changes in areas of LOINC that are actively evolving. Others may prefer to implement on a quarterly or semi-annual basis, similar to the current cadence, and that approach will work just fine. We recommend reviewing the notes for each release so you can make an informed decision about whether a given release contains changes relevant to your implementation.
Will the monthly releases be full releases or only changes since the previous release?
Every monthly release will be a full release containing the complete LOINC dataset, just as you receive today with biannual releases. You will not need to apply incremental patches or stitch together changes from multiple releases. If you skip one or more releases, you can implement any later release and have a complete, current version of LOINC.
Does the recommendation to update LOINC every six months now change to updating every month, every other month, or something else?
There is no single recommendation that fits every organization. With biannual releases, the natural cadence was to update twice a year when new releases were available. The LOINC Committee previously recommended users update to the current version within 90 days of release.
With more frequent releases, you have more flexibility to choose an update schedule that works for your organization or use case. Some may choose to update monthly to stay as current as possible, while others may continue updating on a quarterly or semi-annual basis. Since each release is cumulative, any of these approaches will give you a complete and current version of LOINC whenever you do update. We encourage organizations to review release notes regularly and implement when changes are relevant to their implementation, rather than adhering to a fixed schedule.
We will ask the LOINC Committee to update their recommendation with the introduction of monthly releases.
Will all accessory files (release artifacts) be published with every monthly release?
Yes, every release will include the full set of release artifacts you are accustomed to receiving today. The format and structure of these files will remain the same. Whether you are implementing your first monthly release or your tenth, you will receive a complete package with all the same CSV files, documentation, and supporting materials that are part of the current biannual releases.
How will language translations (i.e. linguistic variants) be handled?
We recognize that the move to monthly releases has implications for our translator community. The approach for linguistic variants is still being determined, and we will be engaging directly with our community of translators to develop a plan that fits their resources, schedules, and workflows. More details will be shared as those conversations progress.
Will there be “major” and “minor” releases? Or are all releases equal?
All releases are equal. There is no distinction between major and minor releases. Every release goes through the same quality assurance and validation process, and every release includes the full set of release artifacts. Each monthly release will contain fewer changes than a biannual release, since updates are being distributed more frequently than bundled into two large drops per year.
Will each monthly release occur on a consistent day of the month?
The specific release schedule has not yet been determined. Once finalized, releases will follow a predictable and consistent cadence so that organizations can plan their review and implementations accordingly. We will communicate the planned release schedule in advance of the transition.
How will skipped releases other than December be determined and communicated?
Occasionally a monthly release may be skipped due to factors such as holidays, internal resource availability, or a lack of substantive changes to publish. When a release will be skipped, we will communicate that decision in advance through our standard communication channels.
Will the LOINC Ontology also be released monthly?
Not at this time. The LOINC Ontology will continue on its current release schedule of March and September. Our intention is to eventually transition this ontology to a monthly release cadence, but we do not have a timeline for that transition yet.
