Comparison of Critical Congenital Heart Defect Case Ascertainment in Texas Using 2 Data Sources

Area of Science:

• Public Health Surveillance
• Epidemiology
• Pediatric Cardiology

Background:

• Texas Birth Defects Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch uses facility discharge lists for case ascertainment.
• Electronic case reporting (eCR) was introduced in 2023 for birth defects surveillance.
• Electronic initial case reports (eICRs) enable near real-time notification of potential cases.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare case ascertainment for critical congenital heart defects using two data sources in Texas.
• To evaluate the completeness and timeliness of electronic case reporting versus facility discharge lists.

Main Methods:

• Comparison of potential diagnoses identified through facility discharge lists and eCR data.
• Analysis focused on critical congenital heart defects in Texas facilities.
• Evaluation of data from 2023, the first year of eCR implementation.

Main Results:

• eCR data demonstrated a more comprehensive capture of potential diagnoses than facility discharge lists.
• Not all diagnoses identified in eCR were confirmed by medical chart abstraction or within the eICR.
• eCR provides timelier identification of potential cases and diagnoses.

Conclusions:

• Electronic case reporting is a more timely and potentially complete source for identifying potential birth defect diagnoses.
• Currently, eCR data alone is insufficient for confirming diagnoses; medical record review remains essential.
• Future enhancements to eCR may improve its utility for diagnosis confirmation in birth defects surveillance.