Validity and usefulness of the RAE-CMBD studying patients hospitalised with influenza

Abstract

Background. Understanding the hospital impact of influenza requires enriching epidemiological surveillance registries with other sources of information. The aim of this study was to determine the validity of the Hospital Care Activity Record-Minimum Basic Data Set (RAE-CMBD) in the analysis of the outcomes of patients hospitalised with this infection. Methods. Observational and retrospective study of adults admitted with influenza in a tertiary hospital during the 2017/2018 and 2018/2019 seasons. We calculated the con-cordance of the RAE-CMBD with the influenza epidemiological surveillance registry (gold standard), as well as the main pa-rameters of internal and external validity. Logistic regression models were used for risk adjustment of in-hospital mortality and length of stay. Results. A total of 907 (97.74%) unique matches were achieved, with high inter-observer agreement (ƙ=0.828). The RAE-CMBD showed a 79.87% sensitivity, 99.72% specificity, 86.71% positive predictive value and 99.54% negative predictive value. The risk-adjusted mortality ratio of patients with influenza was lower than that of patients without influenza: 0.667 (0.53-0.82) vs. 1.008 (0.98-1.04) and the risk-adjusted length of stay ratio was higher: 1.15 (1.12-1.18) vs. 1.00 (0.996-1.001). Conclusion. The RAE-CMBD is a valid source of information for the study of the impact of influenza on hospital care. The lower risk-adjusted mortality of patients admitted with influenza compared to other inpatients seems to point to the effectiveness of the main clinical and organisational measures adopted.