SNOMED CT is a global terminology that was purposefully designed to be multi-lingual. SNOMED CT concepts are abstract clinical ideas, which can be described using many different synonymous terms. Translation tools support the creation and review of descriptions in different languages.

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The International Edition of SNOMED CT is distributed with English descriptions (US and GB English dialects). Currently, entire or part translations of SNOMED CT are available in a number of languages dialects, including US English, UK English, AU English, Spanish, Danish, Dutch, Lithuanian, Swedish and French. Translation tooling can be used to support additional translations of SNOMED CT by Member countries/territories or group of Members that share a common language.

Translations are usually planned in stages, by prioritising subsets of SNOMED CT and then growing the coverage of the translation over time. Translation subsets may be prioritised in a variety of ways, e.g. based on frequency of use, subsets that directly relate to a specific implementation use case, or by hierarchy. Translation is an ongoing process. As new content is added to SNOMED CT, new translations may be required.

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For more information on SNOMED CT translation, please refer to the SNOMED International Translation page.

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SNOMED International translation tool

SNOMED International provides a Reference Set and Translation Tool that can be used to create and maintain SNOMED CT translations (see screenshot below).

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The features related to translation include:

• Translation of the concepts in a reference set

• Ability to import translations using RF2

• Migration of translation reference sets to a new versioned SNOMED CT edition

• Collaborative workflow of translation authoring and review

• Download and publication of translations

• Management of translation metadata

• Sharing of translations via a directory