Record linkage study of the pathogen-specific burden of respiratory viruses in children.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Reliance on hospital discharge diagnosis codes alone will likely underestimate the burden of respiratory viruses.

Objectives

To describe the epidemiology of respiratory viruses more accurately, we used record linkage to examine data relating to all children hospitalized in Western Australia between 2000 and 2012.

Patients/methods

We extracted hospital, infectious disease notification and laboratory data of a cohort of children born in Western Australia between 1996 and 2012. Laboratory records of respiratory specimens collected within 48 hours of admission were linked to hospitalization records. We calculated the frequency and rates of virus detection. To identify groups where under-ascertainment for respiratory viruses was greatest, we used logistic regres

SUBMITTER: Lim FJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5705691 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature