Detection of pediatric respiratory and diarrheal outbreaks from sales of over-the-counter electrolyte products.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To determine whether sales of electrolyte products contain a signal of outbreaks of respiratory and diarrheal disease in children and, if so, how much earlier a signal relative to hospital diagnoses.

Design

Retrospective analysis was conducted of sales of electrolyte products and hospital diagnoses for six urban regions in three states for the period 1998 through 2001.

Measurements

Presence of signal was ascertained by measuring correlation between electrolyte sales and hospital diagnoses and the temporal relationship that maximized correlation. Earliness was the difference between the date that the exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) method first detected an outbreak from sales and the date it first detected the outbreak from diagnoses. The coeffic

SUBMITTER: Hogan WR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC264433 | biostudies-literature | 2003 Nov-Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature