• M Elle Saine, Dena M Carbonari, Craig W Newcomb, Arlene M Gallagher, Betina T Blak, Jason A Roy, Jennifer Wood, Serena Cardillo, Sean Hennessy, Brian L Strom, and Vincent Lo Re.
• Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Center for Pharmacoepidemiology Research and Training, Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Informatics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
• Pharmacoepidemiol Drug Saf. 2019 Oct 1; 28 (10): 1328-1335.

PurposeThe ability of the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD) to ascertain all-cause hospitalizations remains unknown. We determined the proportion of hospitalizations in CPRD that were also recorded in Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), and vice versa, among patients initiating oral antidiabetic (OAD) therapy.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective cohort study from October 2009 to September 2012 among OAD-treated patients registered with general practitioners who contribute to CPRD and consent to HES linkage. In CPRD, we identified initial hospitalizations for each calendar year by an Inpatient Referral, Consultation Type code, or Read code indicating an inpatient episode and determined if an admission date was recorded in HES within ±30 days. We then identified initial HES admission dates and determined if a hospitalization was documented in CPRD within ±30 days. Sensitivity analyses were conducted utilizing HES discharge, rather than admission, dates.ResultsAmong 8574 OAD-treated HES-linked patients in CPRD, 6574 initial hospitalizations across the study period were identified in CPRD, and 5188 (78.9% [95% CI, 77.9%-79.9%]) were confirmed by a HES admission date within ±30 days (median difference, ±3 days [IQR, 1-7 days]). Among 8609 initial hospital admissions in HES, 4803 (55.7% [95% CI, 54.7%-56.8%]) hospitalizations were recorded in CPRD within ±30 days (median difference, ±4 days [IQR, 1-9 days]). Similar results were observed using HES discharge dates.ConclusionA substantial minority of patient-level hospitalization data are nonconcordant between HES and CPRD. Pharmacoepidemiologic studies within CPRD that seek to identify hospitalizations should consider linkage with HES to ensure adequate ascertainment of inpatient events.© 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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