title: [Estimating prevalence of diabetes mellitus in a Lazio province, Italy, by capture-recapture models].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  to estimate the prevalence of diabetes in a Lazio province, Italy, using a record linkage offour patient lists and applying capture-recapture techniques.
  
  
  METHODS
  we selected records of individuals living in Viterbo province (Lazio region, Italy) from four lists obtained from three different health administrative registries in 2004: the hospital discharge registry of Lazio region (ICD9-CM code 250, 2488 subjects); the registry of outpatient care prescriptions (subjects exempted from medical charge for health care related to diabetes, 3582 subjects); subjects with prescriptions of glicate haemoglobin (7169 subjects); the registry of exemptions, from medical charge for health care of the local health unit of Viterbo province, related to diabetes (8529 subjects). A deterministic record linkage using 5 different keys of linkage obtained from demographic information, was applied The estimates were derived using two capture-recapture techniques: log-linear models and sample-coverage approach.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Record linkage results using the 5 different keys of linkage were similar. Prevalence estimates varied between 63% and 7.8% when all four lists were considered and they varied between 5.7% and 6.1% when the glicate haemoglobin list was excluded.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our estimates were slightly higher compared to those recently reported in the literature; estimates were particularly influenced by the inclusion/exclusion of the haemoglobin glicate prescriptions list. Estimates were not influenced either by the key of linkage, or by the capture-recapture technique. Health administrative registries can be used to estimate the prevalence of diabetes through record linkage and capture-recapture techniques. This approach leads to a reduction of time and costs compared with traditional health surveys.
authors.affiliation: Laziosanità-Agenzia di sanità pubblica della Regione Lazio. giarrizzo@asplazio.it
authors.forename: Maria Letizia
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Giarrizzo
authors.forename: Patrizio
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Pezzotti
authors.forename: Irene
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Silvestri
authors.forename: Domenico
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Di Lallo
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011307:Drug Prescriptions; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008498:Medical Record Linkage; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence