Quiz 5, Module Ecological
5. Which of the following is the primary shortcoming when using a reportable disease registry to collect Susser Syndrome cases in our study?
- We may not capture all of the Susser Syndrome cases occurring in Epiville.
- We would only capture prevalence data, not incidence data
- We are relying on the diagnostic capabilities of the doctors and hospitals and are assuming that all reported cases were valid.
Answer (a) —
incorrect:
Although a valid shortcoming in most studies, as we have defined it, all reportable diseases (including Susser Syndrome) must be reported to the Department of Health. Therefore, in a perfect world, no cases would go unreported (In fact, not all SARS cases were reported to the Department of Health through passive surveillance during the most recent outbreak).
Answer (b) —
incorrect:
The registry will have a date of initial diagnosis. As long as we have a clearly defined time component to our study, we will be able to capture incident as well as prevalent cases.
Answer (c) —
correct:
We do not have the time nor the resources to independently verify that all reported cases have been correctly diagnosed.