There is a natural tension between the desire to use features so content may be more expressive and precise, and the cost and complexity of these features.
The desire to use more expressive features is also not uniform across different content domains, and may vary further between SNOMED CT extensions’ more specific requirements.
The cost of introduction of more features in general, and each feature specifically, must be weighed against the need, and the adverse consequences of alternatives and workarounds.
Ultimately this is a trade off made to meet a mixture of requirements and drivers. This specification has been designed to meet the balanced needs of the International Edition of SNOMED CT. As a result it specifies the features included to support the International Edition and most extensions, supporting sufficient expressivity for content while remaining tractable for implementation.
However, it must be acknowledged that extensions may choose to use features that extend beyond the SNOMED CT Logic Profile defined in this document, for which there may be very valid reasons.
This extension is not without consequence. For example, tools designed to be used with the SNOMED CT Logic Profile may not function correctly, and classification times may increase significantly. However these trade-offs may be acceptable within the context of the extension.
The SNOMED CT Logic Profile defined in this document does not seek to limit extensions. However, it does define a reliable profile that implementers can expect the International Edition, and most extensions, to exist within and thereby provides a predictable landscape for tool building and implementation.
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