ART-DECOR® – Release 3.8.10

Release notes 2 May 2025

Introduction

We are happy to announce Release 3.8.10, another minor release with a number of additions, smaller new features and several improvements. 20 tasks were performed, partially based on client requests.

Due to major activities in the area of user feedback and controlled user interviews, collected test findings from various international sources and our own improved testing environment, this release also addressed 20 bugs that were fixed.

Thanks to all testers and people who submitted improvement suggestions! We are lucky to have you with us.

In total, 40 tickets were handled. This is the Release Note with more details.

General Remarks

As a summary, this release focuses on the following major topics: enhancements in the area of

• → Performance and stability,
• → Templates,
• → Concept Maps,
• → Terminology,
• → Software Development / Tools features,
• → Project,
• → Datasets,
• → Scenarios,
• → Questionnaires,
• → ADA.

Please note also our section on Hints for Updating an ART-DECOR® Release for local installations.

Areas of New Features and Improvements

Performance and stability

In the last few releases we moved code that was originally associated with the DECOR software branch into the API structure. We could observe that due to this reengineering the performance went down. We finally identified the problem of too large API functions files and moved most of the functionality into libraries called by the core API functions.

We started with templates and terminologies and found tremendously better performances on API calls. We continue with all other API functions.

• We increase performance of handling terminologies, i.e. value sets [AD30-1922]

Templates

When cloning a template (with the same id), then instead of creating a version, a specialization was created. This was not the same behavior as in ART-DECOR 2. Cloning template now uses the right type of relationship [AD30-1821].

We have traditionally not supported schema torn for intentional valueSets because it is just too complicated for schematron generation. However for complete codeSystem inclusions it is actually not hard to do. It just means we cannot check beyond the codeSystem because we do not have access to the codes.

As an example, the second value set is based on a full code system, but the schematron generation did not recognize that.

<element name="hl7:code" datatype="CE" minimumMultiplicity="0" maximumMultiplicity="1" ...>
    <desc language="nl-NL">Bevat het specialisme van de zorgverlener</desc>
    <vocabulary valueSet="2.16.840.1.113883.2.4.3.11.60.40.2.17.1.7" flexibility="2020-09-01T00:00:00"/>
    <vocabulary valueSet="2.16.840.1.113883.2.4.3.11.60.40.2.17.1.6" flexibility="2020-09-01T00:00:00"/>
</element>

Schematron generation for intensional valueSets based on completeCodeSystem now works the way that intensional value sets based on full code systems are handled correctly [AD30-1998].

Further Achievements in this Release for Templates

• Changing template relationship deleted whole list, which has been fixed [AD30-1822]

• Some Template examples failed to be rendered properly, this has been fixed [AD30-1991]

• Editing a template with examples failed, this has been fixed [AD30-2008]

• Allow Temple to edit templateAssociations when editing the template [AD30-2014]

Concept Maps

The layout for source and target value set for Concept Maps was re-designed and now no longer shows a disabled selection area but the usual artifact pill [AD30-1999].

Furthermore the mapping comments have been re-arranged layout-wise. They are now shown as speech comment icon next to the relationship chip, with a tooltip on hover and an “alert” dialog on click with the comment text, if any.

The Concept Map viewer now gives a displayName for any known code system [AD30-1817].

Further Achievements in this Release for Concept Maps

• Concept maps: Valueset dropdown alphabetically organize + search function [AD30-1813]
• Re-arrange mapping comments for ConceptMap viewer [AD30-1971]

Terminology

The ELGA colleagues reported that : and = should be allowed in value set concept code and display names. From mio42 colleagues it was reported that the Germany language might come up with the request to add all-gender terms in display names, such as Patient:in. The error message for rejecting reserved characters in display names [AD30-2015] and in value set concept code and displayname [AD30-1990] was removed.

There was a note that SNOMED cersions are not displayed in the usual way. The was a change in this behavior that affected the frontend but also the Terminology Pipelines when creating terminologies. The SNOMED Version/Release display on tiles and on found-it bars is now stated as expected [AD30-1919].

Further Achievements in this Release for Terminologies

• Lucene Name search for Value Sets with an underscore _ does now work as expected [AD30-1978]
• A parameter count to FHIR valueSet/$expand was added [AD30-1793]
• Terminology report now allows filtering using the user-defined publication filters [AD30-1858]
• Decor Types got some additions on the BrowsableDesignationType definition [AD30-1955]
• Value Set Expansion from DECOR Value Set ignores simple codes in concept list [AD30-1957]
• Changing display name of a value set was broken and is now fixed [AD30-1979]
• FHIR R4 Extend ValueSet search parameter support [AD30-1985]
• Saving a value set expansion triggered a backend error, this has been fixed [AD30-2000]

Software Development / Tools features

Empty text fields

For empty text fields e.g. in descriptions there is the word “None” shown if there is no text so far. There is now a better indication on empty text fields by an appropriate icon and a tooltip (example shown is in French) [AD30-1980].

Some advice how to follow DECOR check links

DECOR check links open a new tab if user uses Ctrl+ click (windows), Cmd + click (mac), Scroll wheel click / middle mouse button [AD30-2007].

Server and Project Repository Management

In ART-DECOR 3, it was no longer possible to edit the URL of a repository associated with a Project and not possible either to suppress one. This was reported by our French colleagues and has been re-visited.

A System Administrator can add External Repository Server URLs in the ART Settings of the Administrator Menu. In Addition, a System Administrator can add External Repositories with Name, Identifier, and URL. All External Repositories set by the System Admin are “normative” and may be directly chosen by Project Administrators.

Project Administrators can add repositories by clicking the ADD button. The only list they get is the list of External Repositories defined by the System administrator (see before).

Further Achievements in this Release for Software Development / Tools features

• The ART-DECOR oid-registry-hl7org content got an update [AD30-1981]

• A dependency for oid-registry-hl7org was fixed [AD30-1961]

• Edit a user as system admin does now offer changing the language [AD30-1943]

• The partially inconsistent content and behavior on download artifacts in various formats was fixed [AD30-1389]

  

Project

• An option was added to edit existing associated repositories for a DECOR project [AD30-1933].

Dataset

• A failure on inherit regarding relationships pointing to concepts was fixed [AD30-1952]
• POST payload on myCommunity now no longer gives an error [AD30-1995]

Scenario

Inherited concept needs additional identifier association compared to the original. We now support adding an identifierAssociation on a concept, adding concept terminology and support adding a new valueSet binding on the inherited concept [AD30-1956]. It is also supported in publications now.

Further Achievements in this Release for Scenarios

• Transactions in Excel format for downloads [AD30-1370]
• Wrong override cardinality on conditional Transaction concepts [AD30-1848]
• Transaction show usage for concepts (frontend) [AD30-1931]

Questionnaires

• A bug was fixed where Questionnaires were rendered incomplete in LHC [AD30-2002]

ADA

ADA (ART-DECOR Application) is not widespreadly used, but some governance groups base a heavy infrastructure on this satellite feature. There have been some updates to the ADA feature listed here.

• ADA Usability: Update references when an ID changes [AD30-1982]

Hints for Updating an ART-DECOR® Release for local installations

For all our hosted servers we do planned and announced updates of the server software regarding backend and frontend, comprised of ART-DECOR vue and ART-DECOR http-proxy.

TIP

When you have a local installation of ART-DECOR and want to update to this release, please consider reading our Updating an ART-DECOR® Release documentation.

Thank you

A BIG thank you!

We are always thankful for any comments and suggestions.

Special thanks for the feedback regarding the Template Viewer and Editor to the colleagues from ELGA (Austria) and HL7 Italy / Ernst&Young (EY) and for Dataset and Questionnaire editor to the Berlin Institute of Health @ Charité team. Dataset and Scenario enhancements are also coming from the Professional Record Standards Body in the UK – PRSB.

Especially in the terminology and questionnaire sector we got great feedback from the Dutch ICT Institute in Health Care (Nictiz). Thanks to Gunter Haroske working for the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Pathologie / German Association of Pathology pointing to shortcomings and missing features in our Questionnaire functions and to the Dutch Uitkomstgerichte Zorg Program for contributions in the same area.

Special thanks also to the mio42 GmbH team, Agence du Numérique en Santé (ANS) and our partners at Kereval / IHE Europe for testing, feature suggestions and bug fix requests.

Please don't hesitate to write us with suggestions for improvements or feature requests to our email address provided for this purpose: feedback@art-decor.org, also easily reachable through the Services Card at our ART-DECOR landing page (the link with the bulb 😃).

Outlook

Current development is heading towards Release 3.9 which focuses on Concept Maps, planned to be published in July 2024. In parallel, further enhancements and features for the Questionnaire Management are planned to be as Release 3.10.

At the same time we are currently also working on the ART-DECOR Release 4 series. This will imply a big update on the frontend as we switch to Vue 3, also the backend will make use of the new eXist Database Release v6.3.0.

As you can see: more on that to come. Thank you for your patience. Stay tuned.