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Table 3 Chronic health conditions and information available from health interview a and examination b in DEGS1

From: German health interview and examination survey for adults (DEGS) - design, objectives and implementation of the first data collection wave

Health condition Information
Allergic disease
Allergic contact eczema; allergic rhinitis; food allergy; atopic eczema; insect venom allergy; urticarial; other Medical history and family history; current treatment; lifetime history of allergy testing and specific immunotherapy
Inhalation allergy screening tests, total serum IgE, allergen-specific IgE antibody tests against 52 specific allergens (food, pollen, contact, insect, inner room allergens)
Cardiovascular disease
Angina pectoris or other coronary heart disease Medical history, current treatment; angina episodes and related hospitalizations, emergency room treatments, doctor visits during past 12 months; lifetime history of specific tests and surgical procedures
Myocardial infarction (MI) Medical history and family history; current treatment; number of events; time of first and last MI; lifetime history of specific tests and surgical procedures
Heart failure Medical history; current treatment; acute exacerbations and related hospitalizations, emergency room treatments, doctor visits within past 12 months
Peripheral artery disease Medical history; current treatment
Stroke Medical history and family history; current treatment; number of events, time of first and last event
Cardiometabolic conditions
Diabetes mellitus Medical history including type of diabetes and family history; diagnosis during pregnancy; current treatment; treatment following diagnosis; presence of long-term diabetes complications; history of acute hyper- or hypoglycemia and related hospitalizations, emergency room treatments, doctor visits within past 12 months; self-monitoring of blood glucose; time of last follow-up care (foot inspection, HbA1c assessment, eye background exam)
HbA1c; serum concentrations of glucose, insulin, C-peptide, glycosuria, ketonuria, microalbuminuria
Hypertension Medical history and family history; current treatment; self-monitoring; last time of blood pressure measurement by health professional; last self-measurement; history of hypertensive emergency and related hospitalizations, emergency room treatments, doctor visits during past 12 months
Blood pressure measurements
Dyslipidemia Medical history; current treatment; serum total cholesterol, LDL- and HDL- cholesterol, triglycerides
Gout and hyperuricemia Medical history; current treatment; serum uric acid
Gastrointestinal disease
Gastric or duodenal ulcer; chronic inflammatory bowel disease Medical history; current treatment
Liver, gallbladder, pancreatic disease Medical history of hepatitis including type of hepatitis (A, B, C, E) and liver cirrhosis; current treatment
Hepatitis immunoassay and PCR-based confirmatory test results for hepatitis B and C
Serum transaminases (ALT, AST), cholestatic liver enzymes (AP, GGT), lipase; bilirubinuria, urobilinogenuria
Malignant disease
Any type of cancer Medical history including type of malignancy; current treatment and cancer follow-up
Mental health disorders c
Anxiety disorder; depression; burnout; eating disorder Medical history, current treatment
Musculoskeletal disease
Osteoarthritis Medical history and history of joint replacement; current treatment, specialist care; joint pain; lower back pain
Rheumatoid arthritis Medical history; current treatment, specialist care; joint pain
cyclic citrullinated peptide (CCP) antibody testd
Osteoporosis Medical history; type of current treatment and specialist care; lower back pain, history of fractures and falls; fear of falls; lifetime history of bone densitometry
Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin-D, calcium, phosphate, intact parathyroid hormone
Neurologic disease
Epilepsy; Migraine; Medical history; current treatment
Parkinson’s disease Parkinson’s disease
Kidney and urogenital tract disease
Renal insufficiency Medical history of renal insufficiency; current treatment
Serum creatinine and cystatin C; microalbuminuria, proteinuria
Benign prostate disease Lifetime history including time of diagnosis and history of prostate surgery
Gynecological conditions Lifetime history of hysterectomy and oophorectomy; benign conditions
Lower respiratory tract disease
Asthma; chronic bronchitis Medical history including type of asthma; current treatment; lifetime history of asthma-related allergy testing and specific immunotherapy; asthma related hospitalizations, emergency room treatments, doctor visits within past 12 months
Thyroid disease
Hyper-, hypothyroidism; other thyroid disease Medical history including type of thyroid disorder, thyroid surgery, radioiodine treatment; current treatment
Thyroid volume; serum thyroid hormones and TSH, thyroid antibodies (TPO, TGA)
  1. aInformation from computer-assisted personal interviews (CAPI) except for history of benign prostate disease, gynecological conditions, history of falls and fractures, and fear of falls (self-administered questionnaires).
  2. bInformation from standardized measurements and laboratory tests.
  3. cInformation collected in DEGS1 by CAPI, not related to additional information collected in the DEGS1 mental health study module (DEGS1-MH).
  4. dCCP antibody testing was limited to the first year of data collection.
  5. Abbreviations: ALT alanine aminotransferase, AP alkaline phospatase, AST aspartate aminotransferase, GGT gamma-glutamyl transferase, TGA thyreoglobulin antibody, TPO thyroid peroxidase antibody, TSH thyroid stimulating hormone.
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BMC Public Health

ISSN: 1471-2458

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