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Unambigous and standardised communication of laboratory results is essential for patient safety.

Globally, millions of laboratory results are performed and communicated to clinicians. Laboratory medicine serves as a fundamental clinical decision-tool in diagnosis and monitoring. In order to communicate laboratory results safely and reduce communication errors, the Nomenclature on Properties and Units (NPU) terminology provides an international laboratory terminology that presents and commuincates medical laboratory results in an unambigious way and can be transmitted electronically through Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS) and/or in papers.

The NPU terminology is owned and supported by International Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (IFCC) and International Union of Pure Applied Chemistry (IUPAC).

This homepage provides the principles and rules of the NPU terminology with examples of the purposely use of the NPU codes.