[An analysis of the obligatory reporting of meningitis in a pediatric area].
OBJECTIVE
To find out the validity, reliability and quality of the epidemiological information which comes from the System of Statutory Declarations. The example used is the incidence of Meningitis.


METHODS
Descriptive study of the coverage of the Declaration, with the help of the EDO (Illnesses requiring a Statutory Declaration) index, of the pediatric (up to 14 years old) cases of meningitis attended in our Area between 1984 and 1989. We analysed how the Declaration had been filled in and the agreement between the information gathered through the notification system and clinical records. SITE. The whole network of epidemiological vigilance: hospitals, provincial epidemiological services and primary care services.


METHODS
All the cases of child meningitis (120 cases) seen in the Mother and Child Hospital in our area between 1984 and 1989.


RESULTS
The meningitis declaration covered 47.5% of the total number of cases seen. In the cases declared, the diagnosis of meningococcal meningitis on the EDO index was 89.5%, whereas the rate in the clinical reports was only 20%. Thus agreement in the diagnosis does not exceed what could be produced by chance (Kappa = 2.5%; p = NS), as agreement for all diagnoses is 7.1%.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results demonstrate a low level of declaration, poor standard of compliance and scant agreement between the Statement of Declaration and the clinical report. The validity and reliability of this information is extremely low and suggests a need to re-consider the usefulness of this vigilance system for health-service practice, especially in Primary Health Care.
Pascual
J
J
Centro de Salud San Felipe, Unidad Docente de Medicina Familiar y Comunitaria, Jaén.
Caballero
M
M
Moreno
M A
MA
Rodríguez
M C
MC
Romero
M
M
Sánchez
P
P
Torío
J
J
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D008581:Meningitis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011159:Population Surveillance; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012042:Registries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology
Análisis de la declaración obligatoria sobre meningitis en un área pediátrica.