Estimation of the Prevalence of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in the United States Using National Administrative Healthcare Data from 2002 to 2004 and Capture-Recapture Methodology.

ABSTRACT:

Background

National administrative healthcare data may be used as a case-finding method for prevalence studies of chronic disease in the United States, but the completeness of ascertainment likely varies depending on the disease under study.

Methods

We used 3 case-finding sources (Medicare, Medicaid, and Veterans Administration data) to estimate the prevalence of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in the United States for 2002-2004, and applied the capture-recapture methodology to estimate the degree of under-ascertainment when relying solely on these sources for case identification.

Results

Case-finding completeness was 76% overall and did not vary by race, but was lower for males (77%) than for females (88%), and lower for patients under age 65 (66%) than patients

SUBMITTER: Nelson LM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6250049 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature