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Validation of questionnaire reported miscarriage, malformation and birth weight
International Journal of Epidemiology
|March 1, 1984
Summary
Questionnaire data on pregnancy outcomes, including miscarriages and birth weights, showed discrepancies when compared to official records. Validating self-reported environmental exposures, like solvent work, is crucial for accurate pregnancy outcome studies.
Area of Science:
- Occupational health
- Reproductive epidemiology
- Environmental health
Background:
- Assessing the impact of occupational exposures on pregnancy outcomes is vital.
- Questionnaires are a common tool, but their accuracy requires validation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the reliability of questionnaire data on pregnancy outcomes.
- To compare self-reported data with official hospital and register records.
Main Methods:
- A 95% response rate was achieved from 782 women in laboratory work (1968-1979).
- Reported miscarriages, malformations, and birth weights were cross-referenced with hospital records and central registers.
Main Results:
- 12% of reported miscarriages were unverified; solvent work was more common in these cases.
- 50% of reported malformations were corroborated by official records.
- 28% of infant birth weights differed between questionnaires and the Swedish Medical Birth Register.
Conclusions:
- Questionnaire data on pregnancy outcomes exhibit limitations in accuracy.
- Combining questionnaire data with higher-validity sources is recommended for studying environmental factors' influence on pregnancy.