title: The Danish Symptom Cohort: Questionnaire and Feasibility in the Nationwide Study on Symptom Experience and Healthcare-Seeking among 100 000 Individuals.
abstract: Introduction. In order to develop strategies to prevent delay in diagnosis, it is important to gain knowledge of symptoms and healthcare-seeking processes in the population. This paper describes a combined survey and register-based study with (1) focus on development of a questionnaire concerning experience of symptoms and subsequent consequences and (2) feasibility of the study. Methods. The study is a nationwide cohort study of 100 000 individuals randomly selected from the Danish general population. A comprehensive questionnaire concerning experience of symptoms and subsequent consequences was developed. The methodological framework for the development included defining the domains to be measured, identification of previous items, scales and questionnaires in the literature, and pilot and field testing. Results. A total of five domains and 16 subdomains were defined covering the area of symptom experience, symptom characteristics, reaction in response to symptom experience, external factors, and personality characteristics with potential influence on the symptom experience. In total, 49 706 questionnaires were completed, yielding a response rate of 52.2%. Conclusion. We developed a comprehensive questionnaire used in a large combined survey and register-based study concerning experience of symptoms and subsequent consequences of symptom experiences. We succeeded in conducting a large survey providing the groundwork for The Danish Symptom Cohort.
authors.affiliation: Research Unit of General Practice, Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, J. B. Winsløws Vej 9A, 5000 Odense C, Denmark.
authors.forename: Sanne
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-6965-3347
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rasmussen
authors.affiliation: Research Unit of General Practice, Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, J. B. Winsløws Vej 9A, 5000 Odense C, Denmark.
authors.forename: Jens
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Søndergaard
authors.affiliation: Research Unit of General Practice, Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, J. B. Winsløws Vej 9A, 5000 Odense C, Denmark.
authors.forename: Pia Veldt
authors.initials: PV
authors.lastname: Larsen
authors.affiliation: Research Unit of General Practice, Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, J. B. Winsløws Vej 9A, 5000 Odense C, Denmark.
authors.forename: Kirubakaran
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-3612-1731
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Balasubramaniam
authors.affiliation: Research Unit of General Practice, Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, J. B. Winsløws Vej 9A, 5000 Odense C, Denmark.
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-6651-1896
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Elnegaard
authors.affiliation: Research Unit of General Practice, Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, J. B. Winsløws Vej 9A, 5000 Odense C, Denmark.
authors.forename: Rikke Pilsgaard
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Svendsen
authors.affiliation: The Research Unit for General Practice, Danish Research Centre for Cancer Diagnosis in Primary Care (CaP), Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Bartholins Allé 2, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.
authors.forename: Rikke Sand
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Andersen
authors.affiliation: The Research Unit for General Practice, Danish Research Centre for Cancer Diagnosis in Primary Care (CaP), Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Bartholins Allé 2, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.
authors.forename: Anette Fischer
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Pedersen
authors.affiliation: The Research Unit for General Practice, Danish Research Centre for Cancer Diagnosis in Primary Care (CaP), Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Bartholins Allé 2, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-2113-5599
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vedsted
authors.affiliation: Research Unit of General Practice, Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, J. B. Winsløws Vej 9A, 5000 Odense C, Denmark.
authors.forename: Dorte Ejg
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Jarbøl