Prescription datasets (e.g., claims data obtained from Medicare Part D) represent a rich source of information for studying frequencies of prescription and co-prescription (i.e., concomitant medications). We demonstrate that RxNorm supports the conversion of various kinds of identifiers for clinical drugs (e.g., National Drug Code and First DataBank) to RxCUIs, the identifiers required for exchanging drug information as part of the Meaningful Use incentive program. Moreover, drug classes provide a convenient way of analyzing prescription datasets at a higher level (e.g., by aggregating specific medications, such as Lipitor 10 MG oral tablet, into the class statins). RxNorm is well integrated with many drug classification systems, such as the Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classes, and contributes to the class-level analysis of prescription datasets.

Leveraging RxNorm and drug classifications for analyzing prescription datasets

251st National Meeting (2016)

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