Finding Patient Information in Medical Records to Help with Research

Semi-structured Information Retrieval in Clinical Text for Cohort Identification

['FUNDING_R01'] · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCI CTR HOUSTON · NIH-11091543

This project is creating new computer tools to better search through electronic health records and find patients who might be a good fit for future health studies.

Quick facts

Phase['FUNDING_R01']
Study typeNih_funding
SexAll
SponsorUNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCI CTR HOUSTON (nih funded)
Locations1 site (HOUSTON, UNITED STATES)
Trial IDNIH-11091543 on ClinicalTrials.gov

What this research studies

Many important details about your health are written in doctors' notes within your electronic health records. This project aims to develop advanced search engine technology to quickly and accurately find these details. By improving how we search clinical notes, researchers can more easily identify groups of patients with specific conditions. This will help speed up the process of finding people who could benefit from new treatments or contribute to important health discoveries.

Who could benefit from this research

Good fit: This project does not directly involve patients, but its success would benefit patients by making it easier for researchers to identify individuals for future clinical trials and studies related to their conditions.

Not a fit: Patients who are not interested in participating in future clinical research or whose conditions are not the focus of current research efforts may not see a direct benefit from this specific project.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, this work could make it much faster and easier for researchers to find patients for clinical trials and studies, potentially accelerating the development of new treatments and improving healthcare.

How similar studies have performed: While existing computer programs for analyzing clinical text have faced challenges, this project explores a new search-engine-like approach that could offer a more effective way to use patient information for research.

Where this research is happening

HOUSTON, UNITED STATES

Researchers

About this research

  1. This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
  2. Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
  3. For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.

View on NIH RePORTER →

Last reviewed 2026-05-15 by the Find a Trial editorial team. Information on this page is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Always consult qualified healthcare professionals about clinical trial participation.