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The article presents the discussion on osteoporosis is a skeletal disorder characterized by compromised bone strength, which predisposes a person to a higher risk of fracture.

The Atlas 2022 of African Health Statistics is a comprehensive tool that gives an overview of the health ecosystem in the African region. As such, it tracks progress towards globally agreed objectives, such as Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), assesses the capacity of African countries to achieve them, and helps policymakers identify gaps and areas requiring substantial reinforcement.

The article highlights the need for individuals to be able to evaluate the credibility of health-related headlines and discoveries. The abundance of health information available in various forms, such as news articles, medical journals, social media posts, and websites, can often leave people feeling overwhelmed and confused. With so many sources of information, it can be challenging to determine what is accurate and relevant to one's health.

A new study from the National Center for Health Statistics discusses the data linkage program that integrates health survey data with administrative records to enhance analysis. The program aims to create policy-relevant data resources to examine factors that impact disability, chronic disease, healthcare utilization, morbidity, and mortality. However, concerns about data privacy limit access to the linked data, so the NCHS is piloting the creation of public-use synthetic data files to address this barrier. The study also mentions the exploration of other privacy-enhancing technologies to increase data access and partnerships. [Extracted from the article]

A report from the National Center for Health Statistics provides provisional data on mortality in the United States for the year 2023. The report states that there were a total of 3,090,582 deaths in the US in 2023, with an overall death rate of 750.4 per 100,000 population. The leading causes of death were heart disease, cancer, and unintentional injury. The report also notes that the number of deaths from COVID-19 in 2023 was significantly lower than in 2022. The researchers emphasize the importance of timely and actionable data for informing public health policies and interventions. [Extracted from the article]

The article details new findings from the National Center for Health Statistics on evaluating regression models. Topics discussed include the comparison of multiple linear regression (MLR) with nonparametric methods like support vector regression (SVR), the proposed evaluation procedure for these methods in large datasets, and the application of these techniques to the Research and Development Survey.

A report from the National Center for Health Statistics discusses the importance of accurate data on fetal deaths in the United States. The National Vital Statistics System is the main source of this information, which is collected by jurisdiction vital statistics offices and the National Center for Health Statistics. Efforts are being made to improve the quality of this data and to gather additional information from other sources. The research concludes that better data will provide insights into the risks, causes, and prevention of fetal death. [Extracted from the article]

A recent study conducted by researchers at the National Center for Health Statistics explores the use of open-ended survey questions in social science and computer research. The study highlights the benefits of open-ended questions in gaining insights beyond closed-ended questions. However, it also acknowledges the challenges of identifying and removing insufficient or irrelevant responses manually. To address this, the researchers developed a Semi-Automated Nonresponse Detection for Survey text (SANDS) model that uses natural language processing to categorize open-ended text data as valid or likely nonresponse. The SANDS model performed well in identifying valid results, particularly in health-related data, and offers improved efficiency in identifying inadequate and irrelevant open-text responses. [Extracted from the article]

A new report from the National Center for Health Statistics presents fresh data on childhood and adolescence. The report focuses on children with diagnosed health conditions and functional difficulties who do not meet the criteria for having a special health care need based on the traditional scoring of the Children with Special Health Care Needs (CSHCN) Screener. The research found that approximately 4 million children have both a diagnosed health condition and functional difficulties but are not identified as children and youth with special health care needs (CYSHCN). The study suggests that an expanded approach to identifying CYSHCN may better align program and policy with population needs. [Extracted from the article]

A recent study conducted by researchers from Capital Medical University in Beijing, China, examined the progress towards health equity in Vietnam from 2010 to 2020. The study used official health statistics to analyze inequities in health resources, service delivery, service utilization, and residents' health status based on income levels, poverty rates, and subnational regions. The findings revealed both "pro-poor" and "pro-rich" inequalities in different dimensions of healthcare. While overall health equity in Vietnam has improved over the past decade, disparities in health service delivery continue to hinder progress. The study suggests the need for targeted policies to address inequities in the health workforce and service delivery capacity. [Extracted from the article]

A recent epidemiology study conducted in China examined trends in child injury mortality from 2010 to 2021. The study found that the age-standardized injury mortality rate significantly decreased from 21.87 to 9.41 per 100,000 population among children and youth aged 0-19 years. The study also revealed a reduction in urban-rural disparities and gender gaps in injury mortality. However, the suicide mortality rate among teenagers aged 15-19 years increased during the same period. The research concludes that overall, injury mortality has decreased among Chinese children and adolescents, with narrowing disparities between urban and rural areas. [Extracted from the article]

A recent study conducted in Hunan, China, has developed a new method for calculating global deaths associated with population aging between 1990 and 2019. The new method was compared to two existing methods and was found to generate more consistent results. The study found that there were 23.3 million global deaths associated with population aging during this time period, with upper middle-income countries accounting for 43% of these deaths. The most common causes of death related to population aging were ischemic heart disease, stroke, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The study also found that the reduction in mortality partially or completely offset the increase in deaths due to population aging in 97.5% of countries and territories. [Extracted from the article]

As survey methods evolve, researchers require a comprehensive understanding of the error sources in their data. Comparative studies, which assess differences between the estimates from emerging survey methods and those from traditional surveys, are a popular tool for evaluating total error; however, they do not provide insight on the contributing error sources themselves. The Total Survey Error (TSE) framework is a natural fit for evaluations that examine survey error components across multiple data sources. In this article, we present a case study that demonstrates how the TSE framework can support both qualitative and quantitative evaluations comparing probability and nonprobability surveys. Our case study focuses on five internet panels that are intended to represent the US population and are used to measure health statistics. For these panels, we analyze the total survey error in two ways: (1) using a qualitative assessment that describes how panel construction and management methods may introduce error and (2) using a quantitative assessment that estimates and partitions the total error for two probability-based panels into coverage error and nonresponse error. This work can serve as a “proof of concept” for how the TSE framework may be applied to understand and compare the error structure of probability and nonprobability surveys. For those working specifically with internet panels, our findings will further provide an example of how researchers may choose the panel option best suited to their study aims and help vendors prioritize areas of improvement.

A recent study conducted by researchers at Charite University Hospital and School of Medicine in Berlin, Germany, examined data from the European Anaphylaxis Registry and national health statistics to gain a better understanding of fatal and near-fatal anaphylactic reactions. The study identified 305 fatal and near-fatal reactions, with the most common triggers being drugs, insects, and food. Male patients were more frequently affected, and factors such as age, concomitant mastocytosis, and cardiovascular disease were associated with a more severe outcome. The study also found an increase in drug-induced fatalities, highlighting the need for improved allergological care for patients with drug hypersensitivity. [Extracted from the article]

Analysis of trends in health data collected over time can be affected by instantaneous changes in coding that cause sudden increases/decreases, or “jumps,” in data. Despite these sudden changes, the underlying continuous trends can present valuable information related to the changing risk profile of the population, the introduction of screening, new diagnostic technologies, or other causes. The joinpoint model is a well-established methodology for modeling trends over time using connected linear segments, usually on a logarithmic scale. Joinpoint models that ignore data jumps due to coding changes may produce biased estimates of trends. In this article, we introduce methods to incorporate a sudden discontinuous jump in an otherwise continuous joinpoint model. The size of the jump is either estimated directly (the Joinpoint-Jump model) or estimated using supplementary data (the Joinpoint-Comparability Ratio model). Examples using ICD-9/ICD-10 cause of death coding changes, and coding changes in the staging of cancer illustrate the use of these models.

Analysis of trends in health data collected over time can be affected by instantaneous changes in coding that cause sudden increases/decreases, or “jumps,” in data. Despite these sudden changes, the underlying continuous trends can present valuable information related to the changing risk profile of the population, the introduction of screening, new diagnostic technologies, or other causes. The joinpoint model is a well-established methodology for modeling trends over time using connected linear segments, usually on a logarithmic scale. Joinpoint models that ignore data jumps due to coding changes may produce biased estimates of trends. In this article, we introduce methods to incorporate a sudden discontinuous jump in an otherwise continuous joinpoint model. The size of the jump is either estimated directly (the Joinpoint-Jump model) or estimated using supplementary data (the Joinpoint-Comparability Ratio model). Examples using ICD-9/ICD-10 cause of death coding changes, and coding changes in the staging of cancer illustrate the use of these models.

In August 2017, the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), part of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, published new standards for determining the reliability of proportions estimated using their data. These standards require one to take the Korn–Graubard confidence interval (CI), CI widths, sample size, and degrees of freedom to assess reliability of a proportion and determine whether it can be presented. The assessment itself involves determining whether several conditions are met. In this article, I present kg_nchs, a postestimation command that is used following svy: proportion. It allows Stata users to a) calculate the Korn–Graubard CI and associated statistics used in applying the NCHS presentation standards for proportions and b) display a series of three dichotomous flags that show whether the standards are met. I provide empirical examples to show how kg_nchscan be used to easily apply the standards and prevent Stata users from needing to perform manual calculations. While developed for NCHS survey data, this command can also be used with data that stem from any survey with a complex sample design.

Anaphylaxis is a serious systemic reaction—data on fatal and near-fatal reactions are limited.

A recent study conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics examined the differences in adverse events in residential care communities (RCCs) between metro and nonmetro areas. The research found that RCCs in metro areas had a higher risk of overnight hospital stays but a lower risk of falls compared to RCCs in nonmetro areas. This study highlights the growing challenge of long-term care for aging rural populations in the United States. The findings provide valuable insights for policymakers and healthcare providers working to address the unique needs of older Americans living in rural areas. [Extracted from the article]

Our news editors obtained a quote from the research from National Center for Health Statistics, "The current study assesses the validity of the BPSC using data from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). Keywords: Hyattsville; State:Maryland; United States; North and Central America; Health and Medicine; National Center for Health Statistics; Pediatrics EN Hyattsville State:Maryland United States North and Central America Health and Medicine National Center for Health Statistics Pediatrics 1002 1002 1 09/04/23 20230908 NES 230908 2023 SEP 10 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Medical Letter on the CDC & FDA -- Data detailed on Health and Medicine have been presented. [Extracted from the article]

Keywords: National Center for Health Statistics; Science EN National Center for Health Statistics Science 948 948 1 08/07/23 20230811 NES 230811 2023 AUG 13 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Medical Letter on the CDC & FDA -- Fresh data on science are presented in a new report. Keywords for this news article include: National Center for Health Statistics, Science, National Center for Health Statistics. [Extracted from the article]

For more information on this research see: Systematically evaluate the effect of problem-based learning method in the teaching of epidemiology and health statistics in China. Keywords: Asia; China; Epidemiology; Health and Medicine EN Asia China Epidemiology Health and Medicine 4068 4068 1 07/10/23 20230714 NES 230714 2023 JUL 14 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Health & Medicine Week -- Investigators discuss new findings in epidemiology. [Extracted from the article]

These differences between food outlets within rural and urban food environments in the United States are not well understood." Keywords: Hyattsville; State:Maryland; United States; North and Central America; Clinical Nutrition; Diet and Nutrition; Beverage; Food; National Center for Health Statistics; U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention EN Hyattsville State:Maryland United States North and Central America Clinical Nutrition Diet and Nutrition Beverage Food National Center for Health Statistics U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 92 92 1 06/19/23 20230619 NES 230619 2023 JUN 22 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Medical Letter on the CDC & FDA -- Current study results on Diet and Nutrition - Clinical Nutrition have been published. The news correspondents report that additional information may be obtained from Nicholas Ansai, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, Hyattsville, MD 20782, United States. [Extracted from the article]

Health Policy, Health and Medicine, Hospice and Palliative Medicine, Medicaid, Medicare and Medicaid, National Center for Health Statistics Keywords: Health Policy; Health and Medicine; Hospice and Palliative Medicine; Medicaid; Medicare and Medicaid; National Center for Health Statistics EN Health Policy Health and Medicine Hospice and Palliative Medicine Medicaid Medicare and Medicaid National Center for Health Statistics 33 33 1 03/27/23 20230402 NES 230402 2023 APR 2 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Medical Letter on the CDC & FDA -- Fresh data on hospice and palliative medicine are presented in a new report. [Extracted from the article]

Keywords: Changsha; People's Republic of China; Asia; Antiarrhythmic Agents; Beta-Adrenergic Blocking Agents; Cardiovascular Agents; Central Nervous System Diseases and Conditions; China; Drugs and Therapies; Epidemiology; Essential Tremor; Group II Antiarrhythmics; Health and Medicine; Movement Disorders; Musculoskeletal Diseases and Conditions; Pharmaceuticals; Propranolol Therapy EN Changsha People's Republic of China Asia Antiarrhythmic Agents Beta-Adrenergic Blocking Agents Cardiovascular Agents Central Nervous System Diseases and Conditions China Drugs and Therapies Epidemiology Essential Tremor Group II Antiarrhythmics Health and Medicine Movement Disorders Musculoskeletal Diseases and Conditions Pharmaceuticals Propranolol Therapy 2784 2784 1 09/11/23 20230915 NES 230915 2023 SEP 15 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Drug Week -- Current study results on Musculoskeletal Diseases and Conditions - Essential Tremor have been published. Influencing factors of medication intake are different between all ET patients and recommended medication users.". [Extracted from the article]

Meanwhile, the effects of lifestyle,either in baseline level or trajectories, on different CVD subtypes suchas ischaemic heart diseases (IHDs) and stroke varied. Heart Disorders and Diseases - Heart Disease Investigators publish new report on Heart Disordersand Diseases - Heart Disease. [Extracted from the article]

Health Statistics NSW is a new web-based application developed by the Centre for Epidemiology and Research at the NSW Ministry of Health. The application is designed to be an efficient vehicle for the timely delivery of health statistics to a diverse audience including the general public, health planners, researchers, students and policy analysts. The development and implementation of this web application required the consideration of a series of competing demands such as: the public interest in providing health data while maintaining the privacy interests of the individuals whose health is being reported; reporting data at spatial scales of relevance to health planners while maintaining the statistical integrity of any inferences drawn; the use of hardware and software systems which are publicly accessible, scalable and robust, while ensuring high levels of security. These three competing demands and the relationships between them are discussed in the context of Health Statistics NSW.

E-health implementation in Australia will depend upon interoperable computer systems to share information and data across the health sector. Semantic interoperability, which preserves the meaning of information and data when it is shared or re-purposed, is critical for safe clinical care, and also for any re-use of the information or data for other purposes. One such re-use is for national health statistics. Usable statistics rely on comparable and consistent data, and current practice is to use agreed national data standards to achieve this. The standardisation and interoperability needed to support e-health should also provide strong support for national health statistics. This report discusses some of the semantic interoperability issues involved in moving from the current data supply process for national health statistics to an e-health-enabled future.

Health statistics are at the centre of an increasing number of worldwide health controversies. Several factors are sharpening the tension between the supply and demand for high quality health information, and the health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) provide a high-profile example. With thousands of indicators recommended but few measured well, the worldwide health community needs to focus its efforts on improving measurement of a small set of priority areas. Priority indicators should be selected on the basis of public-health significance and several dimensions of measurability. Health statistics can be divided into three types: crude, corrected, and predicted. Health statistics are necessary inputs to planning and strategic decision making, programme implementation, monitoring progress towards targets, and assessment of what works and what does not. Crude statistics that are biased have no role in any of these steps; corrected statistics are preferred. For strategic decision making, when corrected statistics are unavailable, predicted statistics can play an important part. For monitoring progress towards agreed targets and assessment of what works and what does not, however, predicted statistics should not be used. Perhaps the most effective method to decrease controversy over health statistics and to encourage better primary data collection and the development of better analytical methods is a strong commitment to provision of an explicit data audit trail. This initiative would make available the primary data, all post-data collection adjustments, models including covariates used for farcasting and forecasting, and necessary documentation to the public.

Increases in international funding for health have been accompanied by accelerating demand for more and better statistics, which are needed to track performance and ensure accountability. Worldwide interest in the monitoring of development, as exemplified in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), generates pressure for high-quality and timely data for reporting on country progress. This rapid escalation of demand has exposed major gaps in the supply of health statistics for developing countries but also provides major opportunities to increase the supply and use of sound health statistics. First, the emphasis on monitoring and evaluation is leading to proliferation of indicators and excessive reporting requirements, and needs to be refocused on systematic investments in data generation and analysis. Second, the risk of inadequate or poorly targeted investments can be kept to a minimum by understanding the causes of poor availability of health statistics, including lack of accurate measurement instruments, application of suboptimum methods of data collection, and inadequate use of methods and analyses to produce comparable estimates. Third, the preoccupation with MDGs does not take into account the rapid health transition, which implies that health statistics should systematically include a much wider array of health issues from acute infectious diseases to chronic non-communicable diseases and injuries, disaggregated by socioeconomic position. Fourth, the growing number of national household surveys, which are the main source of most population health statistics, need to be streamlined into cohesive and comprehensive country health survey programmes. Now is the time to accelerate the production and use of accurate, complete, and timely health statistics for decision-making by investing in country health information systems that should be based on an efficient and effective mix of standardised methods of data collection and analysis that meet country and international needs.

Since excess use of alcohol contributes to so many varieties of health and social harms, in most countries, there are many potential sources of data indicative of alcohol-related harms. In few instances, compilation and interpretation of these data are straightforward, but, mostly, they are open to various sources of measurement error, which need to be taken into account if they are to be applied for research purposes. Police and health statistics are the major source of such information, but the underlying systems are not usually set up with the purpose of monitoring alcohol-related events. In both of these domains, types of events can be identified, which are wholly attributable to excess alcohol use, i.e. drunk-driving, alcoholic liver cirrhosis. Specific alcohol-related events are particularly prone to variations in, respectively, police enforcement practices, medical diagnostic fashion and sensitivity to prejudices about alcohol-related problems. A case will be made in this paper for the use of multiple surrogate measures of alcohol-related harm drawn from several sources in order to measure and track local, regional and national trends. For health statistics on mortality and morbidity, the aetiologic fraction (AF) method will be recommended for such monitoring purposes. It will also be recommended that these data be categorised by the degree to which cases are attributable to alcohol and also by whether the underlying hazardous drinking pattern is a brief drinking bout or a sustained pattern of heavy intake over a number of years. Nighttime occurrences of road crashes, public violence from both police and emergency room attendance data will also be recommended. It will be argued that routine recording of alcohol relatedness of events is usually unreliable, and the above surrogate measures are preferable. Recommendations will also be made for utilising national surveys of drinking behaviour to improve the calculation of alcohol-related morbidity and mortality, as well as refine estimates of per capita alcohol consumption, another major ‘surrogate’ measure of alcohol-related harm. The arguments will be illustrated with reference to Australia's National Alcohol Indicators Project and related research projects.

OBJECTIVE To compare the National Centre for Health Statistics (NCHS) international growth reference with the new World Health Organization (WHO) growth standards for identification of the malnourished (wasted) children most at risk of death. DESIGN Retrospective data analysis. SETTING A Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) nutrition program in Maradi, Niger, in 2006 that treated moderately and severely malnourished children. PARTICIPANTS A total of 53 661 wasted children aged 6 months to 5 years (272 of whom died) in the program were included. INTERVENTIONS EpiNut (Epi Info 6.0; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia) software was used to calculate the percentage of the median for the NCHS reference group, and the WHO (igrowup macro; Geneva, Switzerland) software was used to calculate z scores for the WHO standards group of the 53 661 wasted children. OUTCOME MEASURES The main outcome measures are the difference in classification of children as either moderate or severely malnourished according to the NCHS growth reference and the new WHO growth standards, specifically focusing on children who died during the program. RESULTS Of the children classified as moderately wasted using the NCHS reference, 37% would have been classified as severely wasted according to the new WHO growth standards. These children were almost 3 times more likely to die than those classified as moderately wasted by both references, and deaths in this group constituted 47% of all deaths in the program. CONCLUSIONS The new WHO growth standards identifies more children as severely wasted compared with the NCHS growth reference, including children at high mortality risk who would potentially otherwise be excluded from some therapeutic feeding programs.Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2009;163(2):126-130--

The Centre for Drug and Alcohol and the Centre for Epidemiology and Research at the NSW Department of Health have developed a web-based interface that allows access to reports on drug related morbidity and mortality in NSW. This article introduces this system, the Drugs Related Outcomes: Population Surveillance (DROPS), describing its development and how it can be used to access drug-related health statistics for the NSW population.