Algorithms and Health Disparities Glossary
a
- Algorithm – A process or set of rules to follow in calculations or other problem solving, typically in computing.
- Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) – Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) is a condition where a person’s arteries narrow and result in reduced blood flow to the limbs.
d
- Data disaggregation – Efforts to parse health data from large, imprecise race and ethnicity categories into more meaningful sub-categories.
e
- Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate (eGFR) – Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate (GFR) is a clinical test used to measure approximately how well a person’s kidneys are functioning.
- Ethnicity – A term to describe people’s cultural similarities, geographic origins, ancestry, or social identity.
f
- Fracture Risk Assessment Tool (FRAX) – FRAX is a risk calculator that pairs demographic info with clinical details to estimate a 10-year risk of major fractures from osteoporosis.
g
- Guidance document – An expert opinion or consensus statement that cites scientific research.
h
- Health disparities – Differences in health status experienced by groups of people disadvantaged because of their race, ethnicity, religion, socioeconomic status, gender, age,…
- Health equity – An ideal envisioned by public health experts in which all people can achieve their best health without being disadvantaged by…
o
- Oximetry, pulse oximeter – Oximetry is a test of how much oxygen is carried by red blood cells, used to estimate how well a person’s lungs are working.
p
- Practice guideline – Practice guidelines are developed by a panel of experts, frequently convened as a group within a professional medical society, that…
r
- Race – A social construct used to group people who may share physical traits, cultural similarities, ancestral background, or social identity.
- Race correction – Adjustment of a diagnostic tool or algorithm to alter its output according to a person’s race or ethnicity. Race corrections in health algorithms can lead clinicians to make different recommendations based on a person’s social identity.
- Risk calculator – A medical equation or algorithm that helps clinicians gauge an individual’s health and may guide treatment options.
s
- Spirometry, spirometer – Spirometry is a test of lung function. A user breathes into a spirometer, a device that measures how much air they breathe in, how much they exhale, and the force of exhalation.
v
- VBAC risk score – A risk calculator to help clinicians decide the risks that a vaginal birth after a Cesarean section (VBAC) poses to a birthing parent