Otsa K, Talli S, Harding P, Parsik E, Esko M, Teepere A, Tammaru M
1 Ida Tallinna Keskhaigla, Department of Rheumatology, Tallinn, Estonia.
2 East Tallinn Central Hospital, Department of Rheumatology, Tallinn, Estonia.
Lupus. 2017 Sep;26(10):1115-1120. doi: 10.1177/0961203316686705. Epub 2017 Jan 6.
Studies have demonstrated considerable variability in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) incidence and prevalence estimates. Lack of reliable epidemiological data may hinder evidence-based health care planning. The aim of the present study was to estimate the prevalence and incidence of SLE in the Estonian adult population. The SLE billing cases were extracted from the Estonian Health Insurance Fund database 2006-2010 and verified using health care providers' databases. The patients' life status data for January 1, 2011, were retrieved from the Estonian Population Register. The calculations for the estimates' lower limits were based on verified cases only; the upper limits calculations also accounted for the billing cases for which clinical data were unavailable. The period prevalence of SLE was between 39 and 48 per 100,000 and incidence rate between 1.5 and 1.8 per 100,000 person-years. The point prevalence on January 1, 2011, was between 37 and 40 per 100,000. The estimates are comparable with internationally published figures and can be used to enhance evidence-based health care planning. The high percentage of billing cases that could not be verified using clinical data supports the argument that epidemiological studies based solely on administrative databases are usually of low reliability.
研究表明，系统性红斑狼疮（SLE）发病率和患病率的估计存在很大差异。缺乏可靠的流行病学数据可能会阻碍循证医疗规划。本研究的目的是估计爱沙尼亚成年人群中SLE的患病率和发病率。从爱沙尼亚健康保险基金数据库2006 - 2010年中提取SLE计费病例，并使用医疗服务提供者的数据库进行核实。2011年1月1日患者的生活状况数据从爱沙尼亚人口登记处获取。估计下限的计算仅基于已核实的病例；上限计算还考虑了临床数据不可用的计费病例。SLE的期间患病率为每10万人39至48例，发病率为每10万人年1.5至1.8例。2011年1月1日的点患病率为每10万人37至40例。这些估计与国际公布的数据具有可比性，可用于加强循证医疗规划。无法使用临床数据核实的计费病例比例很高，这支持了仅基于行政数据库的流行病学研究通常可靠性较低的观点。
