I've been using the DependencyUtility class with dependency parses. There is a method getNominalHead(JCas, Annotation), that you can pass the cas you are working with and the named entity whose head you want. Assuming there are dependency parses in the pipeline it will give you back a ConllDependencyNode object which is the head of the phrase. In my uses it has been satisfactory though I haven't any rigorous checking. Tim
On 03/02/2015 11:29 AM, Dligach, Dmitriy wrote: > Hello, > > Is anybody aware of a reliable way of identifying the head word of a UMLS > entity? In the general domain, people often use Collins rules, but I’m not > sure whether they would be applicable to clinical entities. > > Until recently I was under impression that taking the last word of an entity > would work pretty well, but now that I have looked at the data more closely, > I am not so sure. E.g. it fails in these cases: “breast, left”, “ductal > carcinoma in situ”, “carcinoma, consistent with breast primary”. > > Dima > > > Dmitriy (Dima) Dligach, Ph.D. > Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School > (617) 651-0397 > > > >
