Abstract
BackgroundSyndromic surveillance systems have been developed in recent years and are now increasingly used by stakeholders to quickly answer questions and make important decisions. It is therefore essential to evaluate the quality and utility of such systems. This study was designed to assess a syndromic surveillance system based on emergency departments' (ED) morbidity rates related to the health effects of heat waves. This study uses data collected during the 2006 heat wave in France.MethodsData recorded from 15 EDs in the Ile-de-France (Paris and surrounding area) from June to August, 2006, were transmitted daily via the Internet to the French Institute for Public Health Surveillance. Items collected included diagnosis (ICD10), outcome, and age. Several aspects of the system have been evaluated (data quality, cost, flexibility, stability, and performance). Periods of heat wave are considered the most suitable time to evaluate the system.ResultsData quality did not vary significantly during the period. Age, gender and outcome were completed in a comprehensive manner. Diagnoses were missing or uninformative for 37.5% of patients. Stability was recorded as being 99.49% for the period overall. The average cost per day over the study period was estimated to be €287. Diagnoses of hyperthermia, malaise, dehydration, hyponatremia were correlated with increased temperatures. Malaise was most sensitive in younger and elderly adults but also the less specific. However, overall syndrome groups were more sensitive with comparable specificity than individual diagnoses.ConclusionThis system satisfactorily detected the health impact of hot days (observed values were higher than expected on more than 90% of days on which a heat alert was issued). Our findings should reassure stakeholders about the reliability of health impact assessments during or following such an event. These evaluations are essential to establish the validity of the results of syndromic surveillance systems.
Highlights
From the time John Graunt published the first epidemiological analysis in 1662 until recently, data recording was limited to paper-based modalities [1]
Syndromic surveillance systems geared towards a public health approach are of growing interest [7,9,10]
Gold standards are lacking, it is important to assess the quality of data, which are increasingly used by decision makers to evaluate public health threats [17]
Summary
From the time John Graunt published the first epidemiological analysis in 1662 until recently, data recording was limited to paper-based modalities [1]. Syndromic surveillance systems geared towards a public health approach (not limited to bioterrorism) are of growing interest [7,9,10]. This method has potential for a number of applications, such as monitoring environmental health effects (heat waves, cold spells, and carbon monoxide poisoning) and infectious diseases (influenza, gastroenteritis, and viral meningitis) [6,10,11,12]. Gold standards are lacking, it is important to assess the quality of data, which are increasingly used by decision makers to evaluate public health threats [17]. This study uses data collected during the 2006 heat wave in France
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