Assessing the sensitivity of STD surveillance in the Netherlands: an application of the capture--recapture method.
The capture-recapture method was used to estimate the sensitivity of case finding in two national STD surveillance systems: (1) STD registration at municipal health services (STD-MHS); (2) statutory notification by clinicians (NNS). To identify those cases common to both surveillance systems, cases from 1995 were compared using individual identifiers. Estimated sensitivities for syphilis were: STD-MHS 31% (95% CI: 27-35%), NNS 64% (56-71%); and for gonorrhoea: STD-MHS 15% (14-18%), NNS 22% (19-25%). The combined sensitivity of both systems was 76% for syphilis and 34% for gonorrhoea. Differences in the sensitivity of the systems were significant. The NNS was more sensitive than the STD-MHS, and the identification of cases was significantly more sensitive for syphilis than for gonorrhoea. A stratified analysis showed comparable results for the two sexes. Knowledge on the sensitivity of surveillance systems is useful for public health decisions and essential for international comparisons.
Reintjes
R
R
Department for Infectious Diseases Epidemiology, National Institute of Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, The Netherlands.
Termorshuizen
F
F
van de Laar
M J
MJ
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D018563:Disease Notification / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006069:Gonorrhea / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D011159:Population Surveillance / Q000379:methods*; D012042:Registries; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013587:Syphilis / Q000453:epidemiology*