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Lab Reports

Lab reports look tidy, but every lab formats them differently, names the same test several ways and prints units and ranges in its own style. This category covers the data work only: extracting test names, results, units, reference ranges and abnormal flags, mapping tests to LOINC, and checking values before they reach an EHR. It never interprets results. Read the guide to the parts of a lab report for data entry first, then the post on normalizing lab result units.

  1. Pathology Report Extraction: Fields to Capture

    Pathology report extraction explained: the fields to capture, how synoptic reports differ from narrative ones, and how the data reaches research registries.

    September 25, 2026pathologylab reportsregistries

  2. Checking Extracted Lab Values Against Units and Ranges

    Rules for checking extracted lab values against units and ranges: unit and test pairs, plausibility limits and flag agreement, run before anything is saved.

    September 17, 2026lab reportsvalidationdata quality

  3. Mapping Lab Test Names to LOINC Codes

    A guide to mapping lab test names to LOINC: why one test has many names, how LOINC codes for lab tests are built, and how to review each mapping you make.

    August 5, 2026lab reportsloinccoding

  4. Normalizing Lab Result Units with UCUM

    A practical guide to normalizing lab result units: UCUM codes, a map of common unit spellings, keeping the printed unit, and when not to convert a value.

    May 15, 2026lab reportsucumunitsdata quality

  5. PDF Lab Report to Structured Data: Fields and Schema

    Turn a PDF lab report to structured data: a JSON schema for lab results, patient portal PDFs, and one clean results table built from many separate files.

    April 28, 2026lab reportsjson schemapdf

  6. Lab Report Data Extraction: A Step-by-Step Guide

    Lab report data extraction from received file to approved record: how to extract data from lab reports, which fields to capture and when to ask a person.

    April 22, 2026lab reportsextractionworkflow

  7. Cumulative Lab Report Extraction Across Dates

    Cumulative lab report extraction for reports with dates in columns: parsing multi page reports, pivoting results into rows and skipping duplicate results.

    April 12, 2026lab reportscumulativetables

  8. Microbiology Report Data Extraction

    Microbiology report data extraction for cultures: organisms, colony counts, susceptibility tables and preliminary versus final reports, laid out as fields.

    February 20, 2026lab reportsmicrobiologycultures

  9. HL7 ORU Messages vs PDF Lab Reports

    HL7 ORU messages vs PDF lab reports: what an ORU message carries, what the PDF adds, and when a lab interface is worth more than extracting from PDF files.

    February 13, 2026hl7lab reportsinterfaces

  10. Entering Outside Lab Results into an EHR

    A workflow for entering outside lab results into an EHR: matching results to the right patient, linking the requisition and keeping the source page attached.

    January 8, 2026lab reportsehrpatient matching

  11. Extracting Panel Results Like a CBC or CMP

    Extracting panel results like a CBC or CMP: keeping each analyte tied to its panel, handling differentials and calculated values, and checking completeness.

    January 8, 2026lab reportspanelsdata extraction

  12. Parts of a Lab Report for Data Entry

    A tour of the parts of a lab report for data entry: header, specimen dates, result rows, units, ranges, flags and comments, and the field each one fills.

    December 23, 2025lab reportsdata entryfields

  13. Lab Report Parser: Templates, Rules or Models?

    What a lab report parser does after OCR, how template, rule and model parsers compare, and what lab report parsing in Python looks like for one result row.

    October 27, 2025lab reportsparsingpython

  14. Lab Result Data Entry Outsourcing vs Automation

    Lab result data entry outsourcing vs automation compared on turnaround, error checks, PHI handling and hidden costs, with a worksheet to help you decide.

    October 6, 2025lab reportsoutsourcingautomationdata entry

  15. Lab Report Formats from Different Labs

    Why lab report formats from different labs vary, how reference lab and in house lab reports differ, and how to plan extraction around many layouts at once.

    August 26, 2025lab reportsformatsplanning

  16. Reading Tables in Lab Report PDFs

    Reading tables in lab report PDFs that wrap, merge cells or lack ruling lines, and capturing the comments and footnotes printed under the result rows.

    July 15, 2025lab reportstablespdf

  17. Scanned vs Digital Lab Reports: What Changes

    Scanned vs digital lab reports compared: how to tell them apart, what each one takes to extract, and how to digitize old lab reports still kept on paper.

    May 23, 2025lab reportsocrpdfscanning

  18. Lab Report OCR: What It Reads and Where It Fails

    How lab report OCR turns scanned and photographed lab reports into text, what affects its accuracy, how it handles handwriting and how to choose a tool.

    April 26, 2025lab reportsocraccuracy

  19. Extracting Reference Ranges from Lab Reports

    Extracting reference ranges from lab reports in every printed form: low to high, less than, age and sex specific, and the expected text of qualitative tests.

    February 9, 2025lab reportsreference rangesdata extraction

  20. How Abnormal Flags Are Printed on Lab Reports

    See how abnormal flags are printed on lab reports, from H and L letters to asterisks and bold type, and how to capture each flag without interpreting it.

    December 2, 2024lab reportsabnormal flagshl7