Pub Date : 2024-07-03eCollection Date: 2024-11-01DOI: 10.1515/dx-2024-0026
Vadim Dukhanin, Aaron A Wiegand, Taharat Sheikh, Anushka Jajodia, Kathryn M McDonald
Objectives: Diagnostic disparities are preventable differences in diagnostic errors or opportunities to achieve diagnostic excellence. There is a need to summarize solutions with explicit considerations for addressing diagnostic disparities. We aimed to describe potential solutions to diagnostic disparities, organize them into an action-oriented typology with illustrative examples, and characterize these solutions to identify gaps for their further development.
Methods: During four human-centered design workshops composed of diverse expertise, participants ideated and clarified potential solutions to diagnostic disparities and were supported by environmental literature scan inputs. Nineteen individual semi-structured interviews with workshop participants validated identified solution examples and solution type characterizations, refining the typology.
Results: Our typology organizes 21 various types of potential diagnostic disparities solutions into four primary expertise categories needed for implementation: healthcare systems' internal expertise, educator-, multidisciplinary patient safety researcher-, and health IT-expertise. We provide descriptions of potential solution types ideated as focused on disparities and compare those to existing examples. Six types were characterized as having diagnostic-disparity-focused examples, five as having diagnostic-focused examples, and 10 as only having general healthcare examples. Only three solution types had widespread implementation. Twelve had implementation on limited scope, and six were mostly hypothetical. We describe gaps that inform the progress needed for each of the suggested solution types to specifically address diagnostic disparities and be suitable for the implementation in routine practice.
Conclusions: Numerous opportunities exist to tailor existing solutions and promote their implementation. Likely enablers include new perspectives, more evidence, multidisciplinary collaborations, system redesign, meaningful patient engagement, and action-oriented coalitions.
{"title":"Typology of solutions addressing diagnostic disparities: gaps and opportunities.","authors":"Vadim Dukhanin, Aaron A Wiegand, Taharat Sheikh, Anushka Jajodia, Kathryn M McDonald","doi":"10.1515/dx-2024-0026","DOIUrl":"10.1515/dx-2024-0026","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Diagnostic disparities are preventable differences in diagnostic errors or opportunities to achieve diagnostic excellence. There is a need to summarize solutions with explicit considerations for addressing diagnostic disparities. We aimed to describe potential solutions to diagnostic disparities, organize them into an action-oriented typology with illustrative examples, and characterize these solutions to identify gaps for their further development.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>During four human-centered design workshops composed of diverse expertise, participants ideated and clarified potential solutions to diagnostic disparities and were supported by environmental literature scan inputs. Nineteen individual semi-structured interviews with workshop participants validated identified solution examples and solution type characterizations, refining the typology.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Our typology organizes 21 various types of potential diagnostic disparities solutions into four primary expertise categories needed for implementation: healthcare systems' internal expertise, educator-, multidisciplinary patient safety researcher-, and health IT-expertise. We provide descriptions of potential solution types ideated as focused on disparities and compare those to existing examples. Six types were characterized as having diagnostic-disparity-focused examples, five as having diagnostic-focused examples, and 10 as only having general healthcare examples. Only three solution types had widespread implementation. Twelve had implementation on limited scope, and six were mostly hypothetical. We describe gaps that inform the progress needed for each of the suggested solution types to specifically address diagnostic disparities and be suitable for the implementation in routine practice.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Numerous opportunities exist to tailor existing solutions and promote their implementation. Likely enablers include new perspectives, more evidence, multidisciplinary collaborations, system redesign, meaningful patient engagement, and action-oriented coalitions.</p>","PeriodicalId":11273,"journal":{"name":"Diagnosis","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141491272","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-07-03eCollection Date: 2024-11-01DOI: 10.1515/dx-2024-0048
Francesca Di Gaudio, Giuseppina Brunacci, Annamaria Cucina, Vita Giaccone, Maria Raso, Anna Lundari, Antonio Cancilleri, Vito Buffa, Eleonora Russo, Sonya Vasto, Mario La Rocca, Sergio Indelicato
Objectives: Since December 2019, worldwide public health has been exposed to a severe acute respiratory syndrome caused by Coronavirus-2. Serological testing is necessary for retrospective assessment of seroprevalence rates, and the determination of vaccine response and duration of immunity. For this reason, it was necessary to introduce a panel of tests able to identify and quantify Covid-19 antibodies.
Methods: As a Regional Reference Centre, the CRQ Laboratory (Regional Laboratory for the Quality Control) developed and conducted an External Quality Assessment (EQA) panel of assays, to evaluate the quality of various methods, that were used by 288 Sicilian laboratories, previously authorized on behalf of the Public Health Service.
Results: The performance test was based on pooled samples with different levels of concentration of antibodies. 97 , 98, and 95 % of the participating laboratories tested all samples correctly in 2020, 2021, and 2022 respectively. The best performance was observed in the test of total Ig. The general performance of laboratories improved over the years.
Conclusions: The incorrect diagnosis had and could still have important implications on vaccination cycles. Only through the effort of laboratory professionals, and the extension of the EQA scheme, a better harmonization of methods, protocols, and thus results, to guarantee a better healthcare system, will be possible.
{"title":"External Quality Assessment (EQA) scheme for serological diagnostic test for SARS-CoV-2 detection in Sicily Region (Italy), in the period 2020-2022.","authors":"Francesca Di Gaudio, Giuseppina Brunacci, Annamaria Cucina, Vita Giaccone, Maria Raso, Anna Lundari, Antonio Cancilleri, Vito Buffa, Eleonora Russo, Sonya Vasto, Mario La Rocca, Sergio Indelicato","doi":"10.1515/dx-2024-0048","DOIUrl":"10.1515/dx-2024-0048","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Since December 2019, worldwide public health has been exposed to a severe acute respiratory syndrome caused by Coronavirus-2. Serological testing is necessary for retrospective assessment of seroprevalence rates, and the determination of vaccine response and duration of immunity. For this reason, it was necessary to introduce a panel of tests able to identify and quantify Covid-19 antibodies.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>As a Regional Reference Centre, the CRQ Laboratory (Regional Laboratory for the Quality Control) developed and conducted an External Quality Assessment (EQA) panel of assays, to evaluate the quality of various methods, that were used by 288 Sicilian laboratories, previously authorized on behalf of the Public Health Service.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The performance test was based on pooled samples with different levels of concentration of antibodies. 97 , 98, and 95 % of the participating laboratories tested all samples correctly in 2020, 2021, and 2022 respectively. The best performance was observed in the test of total Ig. The general performance of laboratories improved over the years.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The incorrect diagnosis had and could still have important implications on vaccination cycles. Only through the effort of laboratory professionals, and the extension of the EQA scheme, a better harmonization of methods, protocols, and thus results, to guarantee a better healthcare system, will be possible.</p>","PeriodicalId":11273,"journal":{"name":"Diagnosis","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141476172","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-07-03eCollection Date: 2024-08-01DOI: 10.1515/dx-2024-0082
Mihály Hegedűs, Mehdi Dadkhah, Lóránt D Dávid
At the moment, the academic world is faced with various challenges that negatively impact science integrity. One is hijacked journals, a second, inauthentic website for indexed legitimate journals, managed by cybercriminals. These journals publish any manuscript by charging authors and pose a risk to scientific integrity. This piece compares a journal's original and hijacked versions regarding authority in search engines. A list of 16 medical journals, along with their hijacked versions, has been collected. The MOZ Domain Authority has been used to check the authority of both original and hijacked journals, and the results have been discussed. It indicates that hijacked journals are gaining more credibility than original ones. This should alarm academia and highlights a need for serious action against hijacked journals. The related policies should be planned, and tools should be developed to support easy detection of hijacked journals. On the publishers' side, the visibility of journals' websites must be enhanced to address this issue.
{"title":"Masquerade of authority: hijacked journals are gaining more credibility than original ones.","authors":"Mihály Hegedűs, Mehdi Dadkhah, Lóránt D Dávid","doi":"10.1515/dx-2024-0082","DOIUrl":"10.1515/dx-2024-0082","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>At the moment, the academic world is faced with various challenges that negatively impact science integrity. One is hijacked journals, a second, inauthentic website for indexed legitimate journals, managed by cybercriminals. These journals publish any manuscript by charging authors and pose a risk to scientific integrity. This piece compares a journal's original and hijacked versions regarding authority in search engines. A list of 16 medical journals, along with their hijacked versions, has been collected. The MOZ Domain Authority has been used to check the authority of both original and hijacked journals, and the results have been discussed. It indicates that hijacked journals are gaining more credibility than original ones. This should alarm academia and highlights a need for serious action against hijacked journals. The related policies should be planned, and tools should be developed to support easy detection of hijacked journals. On the publishers' side, the visibility of journals' websites must be enhanced to address this issue.</p>","PeriodicalId":11273,"journal":{"name":"Diagnosis","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141491271","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-06-27eCollection Date: 2024-08-01DOI: 10.1515/dx-2024-0103
Mark L Graber, Mario Plebani
{"title":"The growing threat of hijacked journals.","authors":"Mark L Graber, Mario Plebani","doi":"10.1515/dx-2024-0103","DOIUrl":"10.1515/dx-2024-0103","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":11273,"journal":{"name":"Diagnosis","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-06-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141455900","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-06-27eCollection Date: 2024-11-01DOI: 10.1515/dx-2024-0024
Stephanie M Hadley, Kenneth A Michelson
Objectives: Patients with a delayed diagnosis of diabetes are more likely to present in diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence, risk factors, and consequences of missed pediatric diabetes diagnoses in emergency departments (EDs) potentially leading to DKA.
Methods: Cases of children under 19 years old with a first-time diagnosis of diabetes mellitus presenting to EDs in DKA were drawn from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project database. A total of 11,716 cases were included. A delayed diagnosis of diabetes leading to DKA was defined by an ED discharge in the 14 days prior to the DKA diagnosis. The delayed diagnosis cases were analyzed using multivariate analysis to identify risk factors associated with delay, with the primary exposure being child opportunity index (COI) and secondary exposure being race/ethnicity. Rates of complications were compared across groups.
Results: Delayed diagnosis of new onset diabetes leading to DKA occurred in 2.9 %. Delayed diagnosis was associated with COI, with 4.5 , 3.5, 1.9, and 1.5 % occurring by increasing COI quartile (p<0.001). Delays were also associated with younger age and non-Hispanic Black race. Patients with a delayed diagnosis were more likely to experience complications (4.4 vs. 2.2 %, p=0.01) including mechanical ventilation, as well as more frequent intensive care unit admissions and longer length of stays.
Conclusions: Among children with new-onset DKA, 2.9 % had a delayed diagnosis. Delays were associated with complications. Children living in areas with lower child opportunity and non-Hispanic Black children were at higher risk of delays.
{"title":"Delayed diagnosis of new onset pediatric diabetes leading to diabetic ketoacidosis: a retrospective cohort study.","authors":"Stephanie M Hadley, Kenneth A Michelson","doi":"10.1515/dx-2024-0024","DOIUrl":"10.1515/dx-2024-0024","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Patients with a delayed diagnosis of diabetes are more likely to present in diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence, risk factors, and consequences of missed pediatric diabetes diagnoses in emergency departments (EDs) potentially leading to DKA.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Cases of children under 19 years old with a first-time diagnosis of diabetes mellitus presenting to EDs in DKA were drawn from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project database. A total of 11,716 cases were included. A delayed diagnosis of diabetes leading to DKA was defined by an ED discharge in the 14 days prior to the DKA diagnosis. The delayed diagnosis cases were analyzed using multivariate analysis to identify risk factors associated with delay, with the primary exposure being child opportunity index (COI) and secondary exposure being race/ethnicity. Rates of complications were compared across groups.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Delayed diagnosis of new onset diabetes leading to DKA occurred in 2.9 %. Delayed diagnosis was associated with COI, with 4.5 , 3.5, 1.9, and 1.5 % occurring by increasing COI quartile (p<0.001). Delays were also associated with younger age and non-Hispanic Black race. Patients with a delayed diagnosis were more likely to experience complications (4.4 vs. 2.2 %, p=0.01) including mechanical ventilation, as well as more frequent intensive care unit admissions and longer length of stays.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Among children with new-onset DKA, 2.9 % had a delayed diagnosis. Delays were associated with complications. Children living in areas with lower child opportunity and non-Hispanic Black children were at higher risk of delays.</p>","PeriodicalId":11273,"journal":{"name":"Diagnosis","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-06-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11538999/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141450064","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-27eCollection Date: 2024-11-01DOI: 10.1515/dx-2024-0008
Justin J Choi
Diagnostic errors in health care are a global threat to patient safety. Researchers have traditionally focused diagnostic safety efforts on identifying errors and their causes with the goal of reducing diagnostic error rates. More recently, complementary approaches to diagnostic errors have focused on improving diagnostic performance drawn from the safety sciences. These approaches have been called Safety-II and Safety-III, which apply resilience engineering and system safety principles, respectively. This review explores the safety science paradigms and their implications for analyzing diagnostic errors, highlighting their distinct yet complementary perspectives. The integration of Safety-I, Safety-II, and Safety-III paradigms presents a promising pathway for improving diagnosis. Diagnostic researchers not yet familiar with the various approaches and potential paradigm shift in diagnostic safety research may use this review as a starting point for considering Safety-I, Safety-II, and Safety-III in their efforts to both reduce diagnostic errors and improve diagnostic performance.
{"title":"What is diagnostic safety? A review of safety science paradigms and rethinking paths to improving diagnosis.","authors":"Justin J Choi","doi":"10.1515/dx-2024-0008","DOIUrl":"10.1515/dx-2024-0008","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Diagnostic errors in health care are a global threat to patient safety. Researchers have traditionally focused diagnostic safety efforts on identifying errors and their causes with the goal of reducing diagnostic error rates. More recently, complementary approaches to diagnostic errors have focused on improving diagnostic performance drawn from the safety sciences. These approaches have been called Safety-II and Safety-III, which apply resilience engineering and system safety principles, respectively. This review explores the safety science paradigms and their implications for analyzing diagnostic errors, highlighting their distinct yet complementary perspectives. The integration of Safety-I, Safety-II, and Safety-III paradigms presents a promising pathway for improving diagnosis. Diagnostic researchers not yet familiar with the various approaches and potential paradigm shift in diagnostic safety research may use this review as a starting point for considering Safety-I, Safety-II, and Safety-III in their efforts to both reduce diagnostic errors and improve diagnostic performance.</p>","PeriodicalId":11273,"journal":{"name":"Diagnosis","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141097125","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-24eCollection Date: 2024-11-01DOI: 10.1515/dx-2024-0086
Giuseppe Lippi, Emmanuel J Favaloro
{"title":"Should APTT become part of thrombophilia screening?","authors":"Giuseppe Lippi, Emmanuel J Favaloro","doi":"10.1515/dx-2024-0086","DOIUrl":"10.1515/dx-2024-0086","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":11273,"journal":{"name":"Diagnosis","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-05-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141081053","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-20eCollection Date: 2024-11-01DOI: 10.1515/dx-2024-0071
Camilla Mattiuzzi, Mario Plebani, Giuseppe Lippi
Objectives: Medical errors and complications pose a major threat to the safety of healthcare systems worldwide. This article was hence aimed at determining the current burden of complications of medical and surgical care in the US.
Methods: We searched the latest version of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) WONDER online database (years 2018-2022) using ICD-10 codes Y40-Y84 (complications of medical and surgical care).
Results: The age-adjusted death rate for complications of medical and surgical care increased from 1.17 × 100,000 in 2018 to 1.49 × 100,000 in 2021, but then declined to 0.85 × 100,000 in 2022. The gender-specific analysis showed a similar trend, with the age-adjusted death rate values always being higher in men than in women. A clear age-dependent relationship was also found in the crude mortality rate for complications of medical and surgical care, as higher death rates were observed in older patients.
Conclusions: This analysis reveals that the burden of complications of medical and surgical care has increased over time, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, but has then considerably declined in 2022. However, root cause analysis and actions are still needed for preventing the still noticeable consequences of medical complications.
{"title":"Recent mortality rates due to complications of medical and surgical care in the US.","authors":"Camilla Mattiuzzi, Mario Plebani, Giuseppe Lippi","doi":"10.1515/dx-2024-0071","DOIUrl":"10.1515/dx-2024-0071","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Medical errors and complications pose a major threat to the safety of healthcare systems worldwide. This article was hence aimed at determining the current burden of complications of medical and surgical care in the US.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We searched the latest version of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) WONDER online database (years 2018-2022) using ICD-10 codes Y40-Y84 (complications of medical and surgical care).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The age-adjusted death rate for complications of medical and surgical care increased from 1.17 × 100,000 in 2018 to 1.49 × 100,000 in 2021, but then declined to 0.85 × 100,000 in 2022. The gender-specific analysis showed a similar trend, with the age-adjusted death rate values always being higher in men than in women. A clear age-dependent relationship was also found in the crude mortality rate for complications of medical and surgical care, as higher death rates were observed in older patients.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This analysis reveals that the burden of complications of medical and surgical care has increased over time, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, but has then considerably declined in 2022. However, root cause analysis and actions are still needed for preventing the still noticeable consequences of medical complications.</p>","PeriodicalId":11273,"journal":{"name":"Diagnosis","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-05-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140955507","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-14eCollection Date: 2024-11-01DOI: 10.1515/dx-2024-0009
Lukas De Clercq, Jelle C L Himmelreich, Ralf E Harskamp
Objectives: Proper coding of heart failure (HF) in electronic health records (EHRs) is an important prerequisite for adequate care and research towards this vulnerable patient population. We set out to evaluate the accuracy of registration of HF diagnoses in primary care EHRs.
Methods: In a routine primary care database covering the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area, we identified all episodes of care with International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC) codes K77 (decompensatio cordis) or K84.03 (cardiomyopathy) up to 31/12/2021. We also performed two text-based searches to identify HF episodes without an appropriate ICPC-code. An expert panel evaluated all ICPC and text matches for congruence between the assigned codes and notes.
Results: From a database of 968,433 records we identified 19,106 patients (2.0 %) with a total of 24,011 ICPC-coded HF episodes. Removal of 1,324 episodes found to concern other or uncertain diagnoses and inclusion of 4,582 validated HF episodes identified through text search led to exclusion of 909 (overregistration: 4.8 %) and inclusion of 2,266 additional patients (underregistration: 11.1 %). The inclusion of miscoded HF episodes advanced the first known date of HF diagnosis in 3.9 % of records, with a median shift of 3.45 years. Episode-level underregistration decreased significantly over time, from 23.8 % in 2006 to 10.0 % in 2021.
Conclusions: While there is improvement over time, there are still substantial levels of over- and underregistration of HF, emphasizing the need for cautious interpretation of ICPC-coded data. The findings contribute to the understanding of HF registration issues in primary care and provide insights for improving registration practices.
{"title":"Quality of heart failure registration in primary care: observations from 1 million electronic health records in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area.","authors":"Lukas De Clercq, Jelle C L Himmelreich, Ralf E Harskamp","doi":"10.1515/dx-2024-0009","DOIUrl":"10.1515/dx-2024-0009","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Proper coding of heart failure (HF) in electronic health records (EHRs) is an important prerequisite for adequate care and research towards this vulnerable patient population. We set out to evaluate the accuracy of registration of HF diagnoses in primary care EHRs.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>In a routine primary care database covering the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area, we identified all episodes of care with International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC) codes K77 (decompensatio cordis) or K84.03 (cardiomyopathy) up to 31/12/2021. We also performed two text-based searches to identify HF episodes without an appropriate ICPC-code. An expert panel evaluated all ICPC and text matches for congruence between the assigned codes and notes.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>From a database of 968,433 records we identified 19,106 patients (2.0 %) with a total of 24,011 ICPC-coded HF episodes. Removal of 1,324 episodes found to concern other or uncertain diagnoses and inclusion of 4,582 validated HF episodes identified through text search led to exclusion of 909 (overregistration: 4.8 %) and inclusion of 2,266 additional patients (underregistration: 11.1 %). The inclusion of miscoded HF episodes advanced the first known date of HF diagnosis in 3.9 % of records, with a median shift of 3.45 years. Episode-level underregistration decreased significantly over time, from 23.8 % in 2006 to 10.0 % in 2021.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>While there is improvement over time, there are still substantial levels of over- and underregistration of HF, emphasizing the need for cautious interpretation of ICPC-coded data. The findings contribute to the understanding of HF registration issues in primary care and provide insights for improving registration practices.</p>","PeriodicalId":11273,"journal":{"name":"Diagnosis","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-05-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140916190","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Rafael José García Martínez, José Carlos Garrido Gomez, Enrique María Ocio San Miguel, María Josefa Muruzábal Sitges
Objectives: Analytical interferences, caused by antibodies, often go unnoticed and require a deep understanding of analyzer principles in the correct clinical context.
Methods: A case report details a 56-year-old man with symptoms of hyperviscosity syndrome (HVS) due to multiple myeloma.
Results: The DxH 900 analyzer revealed abnormalities in the nucleated red blood cell (nRBC) graph, attributed to a high concentration of IgA kappa. Immediate plasmapheresis successfully treated HVS, reducing the monoclonal component and eliminating the aberrant green signal.
Conclusions: In the appropriate clinical context, the recognition of analytical interferences is necessary for accurate clinical interpretation, and it is only possible with knowledge of the analytical principles of the instruments. In this case, the high concentration of IgA kappa generated an aberrant green signal in the VCSm.
目的:由抗体引起的分析干扰往往不被注意,需要在正确的临床背景下深入了解分析仪原理:由抗体引起的分析干扰常常被忽视,需要在正确的临床背景下深入了解分析仪的原理:本病例报告详细描述了一名因多发性骨髓瘤而出现高粘度综合征(HVS)症状的 56 岁男性:结果:DxH 900 分析仪显示有核红细胞(nRBC)图异常,原因是高浓度的 IgA kappa。立即进行血浆置换成功治疗了 HVS,减少了单克隆成分,消除了异常绿色信号:在适当的临床环境中,只有了解仪器的分析原理,才能识别分析干扰,进行准确的临床解释。在本病例中,高浓度的 IgA kappa 在 VCSm 中产生了异常绿色信号。
{"title":"Unclassified green dots on nucleated red blood cells (nRBC) plot in DxH900 from a patient with hyperviscosity syndrome.","authors":"Rafael José García Martínez, José Carlos Garrido Gomez, Enrique María Ocio San Miguel, María Josefa Muruzábal Sitges","doi":"10.1515/dx-2024-0038","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/dx-2024-0038","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Analytical interferences, caused by antibodies, often go unnoticed and require a deep understanding of analyzer principles in the correct clinical context.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A case report details a 56-year-old man with symptoms of hyperviscosity syndrome (HVS) due to multiple myeloma.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The DxH 900 analyzer revealed abnormalities in the nucleated red blood cell (nRBC) graph, attributed to a high concentration of IgA kappa. Immediate plasmapheresis successfully treated HVS, reducing the monoclonal component and eliminating the aberrant green signal.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>In the appropriate clinical context, the recognition of analytical interferences is necessary for accurate clinical interpretation, and it is only possible with knowledge of the analytical principles of the instruments. In this case, the high concentration of IgA kappa generated an aberrant green signal in the VCSm.</p>","PeriodicalId":11273,"journal":{"name":"Diagnosis","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2024-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140891016","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}