[Diagnosis of dyslipidemia in primary care: a service to be improved. Results of a multicenter evaluation].
OBJECTIVE
The variability of the quality of care in the primary care procedures to diagnose lipaemia was evaluated.


METHODS
Observation, multi-centred and retrospective study.


METHODS
Random sample of 10 primary care centres in the Murcia region.


METHODS
Patients over 19 with lipaemia detected over the previous twelve months in the general medical clinics at health centres. 500 cases in all were studied (50 per centre).


RESULTS
Compliance with criteria of good clinical practice was evaluated. These criteria were formulated by health centre doctors and included: adequate diagnosis, classification into primary or secondary, phenotype, recording of cardiovascular risk factors and assessment of cardiovascular (CV) risk. The differences between the centres studied and the effect of the centre's characteristics (teaching, location, existence of lipaemia programme) and of the patients' (age and gender) were also examined. We found that none of the cases evaluated satisfied the five quality criteria at the same time. Assessment of CV risk and the aetiopathogenic classification were the criteria least complied with (1.5% +/- 1.0). Centres varied considerably. Their characteristics affected the quality of the procedure evaluated, which in all centres had a lot of room for improvement.


CONCLUSIONS
The quality of the procedures for diagnosing lipaemia can be considerably improved. It varies a lot from centre to centre.
Saturno Hernández
P J
PJ
Unidad Docente de Medicina Preventiva y Salud Pública, Universidad de Murcia. psaturno@fcu.um.es
Gascón Cánovas
J J
JJ
Bueno
J M
JM
Alcaraz
J
J
Martínez Martínez
P
P
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006949:Hyperlipidemias / Q000175:diagnosis*; D008297:Male; D011320:Primary Health Care; D012189:Retrospective Studies