Epidemiology and Disease Surveillance, Animal Health Trust, Suffolk, UK.
Equine Vet J. 2013 May;45(3):302-8. doi: 10.1111/evj.12018. Epub 2013 Jan 7.
The National Equine Database (NED) contains information on the size and distribution of the horse population, but the data quality remains unknown. These data could assist with surveillance, research and contingency planning for equine infectious disease outbreaks.
Two questionnaires were used to assess data accuracy in NED utilising local authority passport inspections and distribution of questionnaires to 11,000 horse owners. A subset of 1010 questionnaires was used to assess horse-owner geographic separation.
During 2005-2010, 17,048 passports were checked through local authority inspections. Of these, 1558 passports (9.1%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 8.7-9.5%) were noncompliant, with 963 (5.6%; 95% CI 5.3-6.0%) containing inaccurate information and 595 (3.5%; 95% CI 3.2-3.8%) classified as missing. Of 1382 questionnaires completed by horse owners, 380 passports were obsolete (27.5%; 95% CI 25.2-29.9%), with 162 (11.7%; 95% CI 10.0-13.4%) being retained for deceased horses and 218 (15.8%; 95% CI 13.9-17.7%) having incorrect ownership details. Fifty-three per cent (95% CI 49.9-56.1%) of owners kept their horse(s) at home and 92% (95% CI 90.3-93.7%) of horses resided within 10 km of their owners.
Data from a small sample survey suggest the majority of data on NED are accurate but a proportion of inaccuracies exist that may cause delay in locating horses and contacting owners during a disease outbreak. The probability that horses are located in the same postcode sector as the owner's home address is larger in rural areas. Appropriate adjustment for population size, horse-owner spatial separation and land usage would facilitate meaningful use of the national horse population derived from NED for risk modelling of incursions of equine diseases into Great Britain.
国家马数据库（NED）包含了马匹数量的规模和分布信息，但数据质量仍不清楚。这些数据可以协助进行马传染性疾病爆发的监测、研究和应急规划。
1）评估 NED 中过时和缺失数据的程度，2）评估马和主人位置之间的空间分离程度，3）确定空间分离与土地利用之间的关系。
使用当地政府护照检查和向 11000 名马主分发问卷，利用两份问卷评估 NED 中的数据准确性。使用 1010 份问卷的子集评估马主的地理分离情况。
在 2005-2010 年期间，通过当地政府检查检查了 17048 本护照。其中，1558 本护照（9.1%；95%置信区间[CI] 8.7-9.5%）不符合规定，其中 963 本（5.6%；95% CI 5.3-6.0%）包含不准确的信息，595 本（3.5%；95% CI 3.2-3.8%）被归类为缺失。在完成的 1382 份马主问卷中，有 380 本护照（27.5%；95% CI 25.2-29.9%）过期，其中 162 本（11.7%；95% CI 10.0-13.4%）为已故马匹保留，218 本（15.8%；95% CI 13.9-17.7%）的所有权信息有误。53%（95% CI 49.9-56.1%）的马主将马养在家里，92%（95% CI 90.3-93.7%）的马距离主人 10 公里以内。
小样本调查数据表明，NED 上的大多数数据都是准确的，但存在一定比例的不准确数据，这可能会导致在疾病爆发期间延迟寻找马匹和联系马主。在农村地区，马位于与主人家庭住址相同邮政编码区域的概率更大。对人口规模、马主空间分离和土地使用进行适当调整，将有助于对英国马匹疾病入侵风险进行建模，从而有效利用 NED 中获取的全国马匹数据。
