Toward a unified understanding of drug-drug interactions: mapping Japanese drug codes to RxNorm concepts.

OBJECTIVES Linking information on Japanese pharmaceutical products to global knowledge bases (KBs) would enhance international collaborative research and yield valuable insights. However, public access to mappings of Japanese pharmaceutical products that use international controlled vocabularies remains limited. This study mapped YJ codes to RxNorm ingredient classes, providing new insights by comparing Japanese and international drug-drug interaction (DDI) information using a case study methodology. MATERIALS AND METHODS Tables linking YJ codes to RxNorm concepts were created using the application programming interfaces of the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes and the National Library of Medicine. A comparative analysis of Japanese and international DDI information was thus performed by linking to an international DDI KB. RESULTS There was limited agreement between the Japanese and international DDI severity classifications. Cross-tabulation of Japanese and international DDIs by severity showed that 213 combinations classified as serious DDIs by an international KB were missing from the Japanese DDI information. DISCUSSION It is desirable that efforts be undertaken to standardize international criteria for DDIs to ensure consistency in the classification of their severity. CONCLUSION The classification of DDI severity remains highly variable. It is imperative to augment the repository of critical DDI information, which would revalidate the utility of fostering collaborations with global KBs.