Language

English

Publication Date

3-1-2026

Journal

Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: Global

DOI

10.1016/j.jacig.2025.100618

PMID

41503607

PMCID

PMC12769801

PubMedCentral® Posted Date

11-26-2025

PubMedCentral® Full Text Version

Post-print

Abstract

Background: The natural language processing (NLP) algorithm for predetermined asthma criteria (NLP-PAC) was successfully developed and validated for automatically ascertaining pediatric asthma from electronic health record (EHRs) systems. A scalable, efficient, and automated tool for ascertaining adult asthma status from EHRs remains nonexistent.

Objective: We validated NLP-PAC enabling ascertainment and early identification of adult asthma status in their EHRs.

Methods: We applied the validated NLP-PAC to EHRs of a convenient sample (adult cohorts who participated in our previous population-based studies) in which a reference standard (ie, asthma status defined by manual chart review) is available. The performance of NLP-PAC was assessed by determining criterion validity against manual chart review and construct validity before and after the new EHR (Epic) system was implemented in 2018.

Results: The cohort consisted of 1,898 subjects, with 43% male and a median age at time of last follow-up of 65 years (interquartile range, 55-76). Manual chart review and NLP-PAC identified 97 (5.1%) and 98 (5.1%) subjects with asthma, respectively, with 89 subjects commonly identified by both methods. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of NLP-PAC were 92%, 99%, 91%, and 99%, respectively, before the new EHR system was implement, which remained similar after introducing the system (95%, 88%, 96%, and 85%, respectively). The risk factors for asthma identified either by NLP-PAC or manual chart review were similar.

Conclusion: Automatic asthma ascertainment for adults based on EHR data is feasible with our NLP algorithm, offering immense scientific and clinical value for large-scale clinical research and population management for adult asthma care.

Keywords

Asthma, adult, natural language processing, diagnosis, electronic health record, diagnosis management, artificial intelligence, algorithm

Published Open-Access

yes

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