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Validation of hospital discharge diagnosis data for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other allied conditions.

S Mazumdar, D S Colbus and M C Townsend

The assumption that discharge diagnoses of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other allied conditions accurately reflect patient medical records was tested using a sample of 553 hospital discharges from the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area. Three validation criteria were used in reviewing patient hospital records: 1) the presence of abnormal spirometry test results; 2) reference made to a previous diagnosis of one of the conditions; and 3) reports of respiratory symptoms consistent with these conditions. The findings were that 1 per cent of the 432 cases with a primary diagnosis in this disease category and 10 per cent of the 121 cases with a primary diagnosis of heart disease and a secondary diagnosis in this disease category were not supported by any of the selected criteria.