The World Health Organization (WHO) has released the 2025 edition of the International Classification of Diseases 11th Revision (ICD-11) – a tool that standardizes the language used by health professionals worldwide in diagnosing, reporting and monitoring diseases, injuries and causes of death.
The update includes:
- new features designed to improve interoperability, accuracy and ease of use in national health systems (e.g. advanced NLP and API-based coding);
- improved error detection with enhanced spelling correction and language variation recognition, reducing errors in data entry;
- multilingual expansion, available in 14 languages, with ongoing expansion to improve global accessibility;
- interoperability with external standards: ICD-11 seamlessly integrates with Orphanet, MedDRA, and other terminologies and classifications; and
- a new module covering traditional medicine conditions of Ayurveda and related traditional medicine systems, including Siddha and Unani, will enable systematic tracking of traditional medicine services, enhancing global research, reporting and evidence-based policymaking.
The ICD is a flagship WHO product that serves as the basis for identifying health trends and statistics at country level and worldwide. ICD is at the foundation of WHO's Fourteenth General Programme of Work efforts to accelerate progress towards health-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), addressing inequalities and achieving relevant national health targets. Every day, vital and life-saving decisions in clinical, administrative, policy and research settings are guided by the common terminology defined in ICD-11.
ICD-11 also influences the availability of financial protection and social insurance, as health insurers' reimbursements depend on ICD coding. Moreover, the classification of diseases has an immeasurable impact on how society's views and behaviours towards diseases and health conditions are shaped; how people seek and receive health care; how providers respond; and what policies surround the provision of care. For example, when diseases of the immune system were re-classified and given more focus in ICD-11, it helped health practitioners address autoimmune disorders based on the most current knowledge and evidence.
A digital future
ICD-11 enhances global health communication by providing a standardized classification and terminology for seamless integration across health information systems, languages and settings.
"With the new updates, the ICD-11 offers more ease of use, improved interoperability and accuracy, which will benefit national health systems and the people they serve," said Dr Robert Jakob, Team Leader, Classifications Terminologies and Standards, WHO.
ICD-11 is designed for flexibility when working in non-digital settings, while its 2025 edition facilitates countries to embrace digital innovation and enhance their health systems. The 2025 edition of ICD-11 takes is a major step forward with FHIR API integration and advanced natural language processing (NLP). These innovations enable seamless, real-time data exchange across health systems, making coding faster, more accurate, and less disruptive to patient care. With this intuitive design and smarter automation, health workers can focus on what matters most, while training requires fewer resources and less time.
With every annual update, ICD-11 further reflects progress in science and medicine on which billions of people across the world rely for their health and well-being.
