Completeness and positive predictive value of registration of upper limb embolectomy in the Danish National Vascular Registry

Abstract

Ljubica V Andersen1, Leif S Mortensen2, Jes S Lindholt3, Ole Faergeman4, Eskild W Henneberg3, Lars Frost51Department of Pharmacology, Odense University Hospital, Denmark; 2UNI-C, The Danish IT Centre for Education and Research, Aarhus, Denmark; 3Vascular Research Unit, Department of Vascular Surgery, Viborg Hospital, Denmark; 4Department of Cardiology and Internal Medicine, Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark; 5Department of Medicine, Silkeborg Hospital, DenmarkObjective: To evaluate completeness and positive predictive value of the Danish National Vascular Registry regarding registration of the surgical procedures: embolectomy of brachial, ulnar, or radial artery. Study design and settings: The study was based on first-time embolectomies in the brachial, ulnar, or radial artery performed in Denmark from January 1, 1990 to December 31, 2002. The data were primarily retrieved from the Danish National Vascular Registry and secondarily from the Danish National Registry of Patients. Medical records were retrieved using a standardized form.Results: In total, 1433 incident cases of first-time embolectomy were found in both registries. The positive predictive value of the registration was 97.5% (95% confidence interval [CI]; 96.4–98.4). The degree of completeness was 86.5% (95% CI; 84.3–88.5). For the registration period from 1990 till 1996 the degree of completeness was 78.2% (95% CI; 74.4–81.7), and from 1997 till 2002 it was 93.8% (95% CI; 91.6–95.7). Conclusion: The completeness and positive predictive value of registration of embolectomy in the upper limb in the Danish National Vascular Registry was 86.5% and 97.5%, respectively. This registry can be a valuable tool for epidemiological research and quality-monitoring. Keywords: positive predictive value, completeness, capture-recapture method, validity, embolectomy, registration.