Alessandra Ronconi - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Uploads
Papers by Alessandra Ronconi
The paper assesses the performance of administrative archives in reducing under-coverage errors i... more The paper assesses the performance of administrative archives in reducing under-coverage errors in register-assisted population censuses caused by poorly maintained population registers. Preliminary results from a simulation based on the 2009 pilot survey provide encouraging evidence on the usefulness of these auxiliary archives.
Acta Obstetricia Et Gynecologica Scandinavica
Maternal near-miss defines a narrow category of morbidity encompassing potentially life-threateni... more Maternal near-miss defines a narrow category of morbidity encompassing potentially life-threatening episodes. The purpose of this study was to detect near-miss instances among women admitted to intensive care units or coronary units, analyze associated causes, and compute absolute and specific maternal morbidity rates in six Italian regions. Observational retrospective study. Six Italian regions representing 49% of all resident Italian women aged 15-49 years. The study population included all pregnant women aged 15-49 years admitted to intensive care units or coronary care units in the participating regions. Cases were defined as women aged 15-49 years resident in the participating regions, with one or more hospitalizations in intensive care for pregnancy or any pregnancy outcome between 2004 and 2005. Cases were identified through the Hospital Discharge Database. Enrolled cases were diagnosed according to the 9(th) International Classification of Diseases. Maternal near-miss rate (...
BJOG An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology
To detect maternal deaths, analyse associated causes and compute absolute and specific maternal m... more To detect maternal deaths, analyse associated causes and compute absolute and specific maternal mortality ratio among five Italian regions in response to a recent ranking of Italy by the Lancet as having the lowest maternal mortality ratio among 181 countries. Record-linkage study. Five Italian regions. All women aged 15-49 years resident in the participating regions, with one or more hospitalisations for pregnancy or any pregnancy outcome between 2000 and 2007. Maternal deaths have been identified by record linkage between the Death Registry and the Hospital Discharge Database. Different time periods were analysed according to local data availability. Cases have been selected and causes of death have been classified according to the 10th International Classification of Diseases. Maternal mortality ratio. Underreporting of official figures based on death certification in the participating regions is 63%. A total of 118 maternal deaths have been identified resulting in a maternal mor...
Igiene e sanità pubblica
This study evaluated the proportion of food samples, examined by the Italian Istituti Zooprofilat... more This study evaluated the proportion of food samples, examined by the Italian Istituti Zooprofilattici Sperimentali (Experimental Zooprophylactic Institutes) in the years 2000-2005, positive for Campylobacter and Listeria. A correlation was found between food samples found positive for Listeria in the years 2002-2005 and the number of hospitalisations for Listeria illness in the same years (as reported in hospital discharge abstract forms). This confirms that attention should be given in the evaluation of phenomena known to be under reported and for which data are collected and analysed by different methods.
Obstetric Anesthesia Digest, 2012
The European Journal of Public Health, 2011
Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death and disability in the worl... more Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death and disability in the world. Many cardiovascular risk factors can be prevented. We assessed whether socio-economic factors are associated with individual preventive behaviours in Italy. Methods: A cross-sectional analysis of a nationally representative sample of 47 391 adults aged 40-69 years was undertaken using 2004-05 National Health Interview Survey data. Logistic regression models were developed to assess the association between socio-economic status (SES) and regular monitoring of blood pressure, cholesterol, body mass index and glycaemia. SES was estimated according to education and occupation. Results: SES was significantly associated with regular monitoring of risk factors for CVD. The most educated were more likely to monitor cholesterol levels than those with less education [men odds ratio (OR) 1.64, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.46-1.86; women OR 1.36, 95% CI 1.19-1.55]. Individuals in the highest occupational class controlled weight more frequently than those disadvantaged with an OR of 1.24 (95% CI 1.04-1.49) for men and an OR of 1.26 (95% CI 1.12-1.42) for women. Conclusion: Socio-economic disparities in the prevention of risk factors for CVD were clearly observed among Italian adults, generally favouring higher socio-economic groups.
European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, 2013
The continuous growth of antidepressant consumption and expenditure, especially for selective ser... more The continuous growth of antidepressant consumption and expenditure, especially for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), has led to the adoption of several policy measures directed toward cost control in Western countries. In Italy, copayment policies have been heterogeneously introduced at a regional level as part of a strategy designed to reduce drug consumption. The aim of our study was to evaluate whether regional copayment policies have affected trends in the consumption of and expenditure for SSRIs from 2001 to 2007. The consumption of SSRIs was measured in terms of defined daily doses per 1,000 inhabitants (DDD/1000) per day from May 2001 to December 2007. Time trends in consumption and expenditure before and after the introduction of copayment policies were examined using segmented regression analysis of interrupted time-series, adjusting for seasonal components. The study was conducted for 17 regions, nine of which had implemented a copayment policy. The overall consumption of SSRIs in Italy increased during the study period, from a monthly consumption of 12.85 DDD/1000 per day in May 2001 to 23.40 DDD/1000 per day in December 2007. The average monthly increase in SSRI use was 0.82 % in regions with a copayment policy versus 0.77 % in regions without a copayment policy (P = 0.329). According to the multivariable analysis, copayment was associated with a 1 % reduction in the monthly growth rate of SSRI consumption (P = 0.01). The impact of copayment on expenditure was statistically significant (P < 0.005) on both the level and the trend, even though the estimate of the effect was negligible. The implementation of copayment policies in Italy affected both the use and expenditure of SSRIs between 2001 and 2007 to only to a minor extent.
BMC Public Health, 2012
Background: Breast and cervical cancer screening are widely recognized as effective preventive pr... more Background: Breast and cervical cancer screening are widely recognized as effective preventive procedures in reducing cancer mortality. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of socioeconomic disparities in the uptake of female screening in Italy, with a specific focus on different types of screening programs.
Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica, 2012
Maternal near-miss defines a narrow category of morbidity encompassing potentially life-threateni... more Maternal near-miss defines a narrow category of morbidity encompassing potentially life-threatening episodes. The purpose of this study was to detect near-miss instances among women admitted to intensive care units or coronary units, analyze associated causes, and compute absolute and specific maternal morbidity rates in six Italian regions. Observational retrospective study. Six Italian regions representing 49% of all resident Italian women aged 15-49 years. The study population included all pregnant women aged 15-49 years admitted to intensive care units or coronary care units in the participating regions. Cases were defined as women aged 15-49 years resident in the participating regions, with one or more hospitalizations in intensive care for pregnancy or any pregnancy outcome between 2004 and 2005. Cases were identified through the Hospital Discharge Database. Enrolled cases were diagnosed according to the 9(th) International Classification of Diseases. Maternal near-miss rate (number of women experiencing an admission to intensive care units/all women with live or stillborn babies). A total of 1259 near-miss cases were identified and the total maternal near-miss rate was 2.0/1000 deliveries. Seventy percent of the women were admitted to intensive care units or coronary units after a cesarean section. The leading associated risk factors were obstetric hemorrhage/disseminated intravascular coagulation (40%) and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (29%). Monitoring of near-miss morbidity in conjunction with mortality surveillance could help to identify effective preventive measures for potentially life-threatening episodes.
Journal of Public Health, 2012
Abstract Aim To evaluate how researchers in the field of Public Health (PH) use graphical represe... more Abstract Aim To evaluate how researchers in the field of Public Health (PH) use graphical representations in the context of a scientific meeting. Subjects and methods We evaluated 159 graphs contained in the oral presentations given at the 2006 European Conference ...
The paper assesses the performance of administrative archives in reducing under-coverage errors i... more The paper assesses the performance of administrative archives in reducing under-coverage errors in register-assisted population censuses caused by poorly maintained population registers. Preliminary results from a simulation based on the 2009 pilot survey provide encouraging evidence on the usefulness of these auxiliary archives.
Acta Obstetricia Et Gynecologica Scandinavica
Maternal near-miss defines a narrow category of morbidity encompassing potentially life-threateni... more Maternal near-miss defines a narrow category of morbidity encompassing potentially life-threatening episodes. The purpose of this study was to detect near-miss instances among women admitted to intensive care units or coronary units, analyze associated causes, and compute absolute and specific maternal morbidity rates in six Italian regions. Observational retrospective study. Six Italian regions representing 49% of all resident Italian women aged 15-49 years. The study population included all pregnant women aged 15-49 years admitted to intensive care units or coronary care units in the participating regions. Cases were defined as women aged 15-49 years resident in the participating regions, with one or more hospitalizations in intensive care for pregnancy or any pregnancy outcome between 2004 and 2005. Cases were identified through the Hospital Discharge Database. Enrolled cases were diagnosed according to the 9(th) International Classification of Diseases. Maternal near-miss rate (...
BJOG An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology
To detect maternal deaths, analyse associated causes and compute absolute and specific maternal m... more To detect maternal deaths, analyse associated causes and compute absolute and specific maternal mortality ratio among five Italian regions in response to a recent ranking of Italy by the Lancet as having the lowest maternal mortality ratio among 181 countries. Record-linkage study. Five Italian regions. All women aged 15-49 years resident in the participating regions, with one or more hospitalisations for pregnancy or any pregnancy outcome between 2000 and 2007. Maternal deaths have been identified by record linkage between the Death Registry and the Hospital Discharge Database. Different time periods were analysed according to local data availability. Cases have been selected and causes of death have been classified according to the 10th International Classification of Diseases. Maternal mortality ratio. Underreporting of official figures based on death certification in the participating regions is 63%. A total of 118 maternal deaths have been identified resulting in a maternal mor...
Igiene e sanità pubblica
This study evaluated the proportion of food samples, examined by the Italian Istituti Zooprofilat... more This study evaluated the proportion of food samples, examined by the Italian Istituti Zooprofilattici Sperimentali (Experimental Zooprophylactic Institutes) in the years 2000-2005, positive for Campylobacter and Listeria. A correlation was found between food samples found positive for Listeria in the years 2002-2005 and the number of hospitalisations for Listeria illness in the same years (as reported in hospital discharge abstract forms). This confirms that attention should be given in the evaluation of phenomena known to be under reported and for which data are collected and analysed by different methods.
Obstetric Anesthesia Digest, 2012
The European Journal of Public Health, 2011
Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death and disability in the worl... more Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death and disability in the world. Many cardiovascular risk factors can be prevented. We assessed whether socio-economic factors are associated with individual preventive behaviours in Italy. Methods: A cross-sectional analysis of a nationally representative sample of 47 391 adults aged 40-69 years was undertaken using 2004-05 National Health Interview Survey data. Logistic regression models were developed to assess the association between socio-economic status (SES) and regular monitoring of blood pressure, cholesterol, body mass index and glycaemia. SES was estimated according to education and occupation. Results: SES was significantly associated with regular monitoring of risk factors for CVD. The most educated were more likely to monitor cholesterol levels than those with less education [men odds ratio (OR) 1.64, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.46-1.86; women OR 1.36, 95% CI 1.19-1.55]. Individuals in the highest occupational class controlled weight more frequently than those disadvantaged with an OR of 1.24 (95% CI 1.04-1.49) for men and an OR of 1.26 (95% CI 1.12-1.42) for women. Conclusion: Socio-economic disparities in the prevention of risk factors for CVD were clearly observed among Italian adults, generally favouring higher socio-economic groups.
European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, 2013
The continuous growth of antidepressant consumption and expenditure, especially for selective ser... more The continuous growth of antidepressant consumption and expenditure, especially for selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), has led to the adoption of several policy measures directed toward cost control in Western countries. In Italy, copayment policies have been heterogeneously introduced at a regional level as part of a strategy designed to reduce drug consumption. The aim of our study was to evaluate whether regional copayment policies have affected trends in the consumption of and expenditure for SSRIs from 2001 to 2007. The consumption of SSRIs was measured in terms of defined daily doses per 1,000 inhabitants (DDD/1000) per day from May 2001 to December 2007. Time trends in consumption and expenditure before and after the introduction of copayment policies were examined using segmented regression analysis of interrupted time-series, adjusting for seasonal components. The study was conducted for 17 regions, nine of which had implemented a copayment policy. The overall consumption of SSRIs in Italy increased during the study period, from a monthly consumption of 12.85 DDD/1000 per day in May 2001 to 23.40 DDD/1000 per day in December 2007. The average monthly increase in SSRI use was 0.82 % in regions with a copayment policy versus 0.77 % in regions without a copayment policy (P = 0.329). According to the multivariable analysis, copayment was associated with a 1 % reduction in the monthly growth rate of SSRI consumption (P = 0.01). The impact of copayment on expenditure was statistically significant (P < 0.005) on both the level and the trend, even though the estimate of the effect was negligible. The implementation of copayment policies in Italy affected both the use and expenditure of SSRIs between 2001 and 2007 to only to a minor extent.
BMC Public Health, 2012
Background: Breast and cervical cancer screening are widely recognized as effective preventive pr... more Background: Breast and cervical cancer screening are widely recognized as effective preventive procedures in reducing cancer mortality. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of socioeconomic disparities in the uptake of female screening in Italy, with a specific focus on different types of screening programs.
Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica, 2012
Maternal near-miss defines a narrow category of morbidity encompassing potentially life-threateni... more Maternal near-miss defines a narrow category of morbidity encompassing potentially life-threatening episodes. The purpose of this study was to detect near-miss instances among women admitted to intensive care units or coronary units, analyze associated causes, and compute absolute and specific maternal morbidity rates in six Italian regions. Observational retrospective study. Six Italian regions representing 49% of all resident Italian women aged 15-49 years. The study population included all pregnant women aged 15-49 years admitted to intensive care units or coronary care units in the participating regions. Cases were defined as women aged 15-49 years resident in the participating regions, with one or more hospitalizations in intensive care for pregnancy or any pregnancy outcome between 2004 and 2005. Cases were identified through the Hospital Discharge Database. Enrolled cases were diagnosed according to the 9(th) International Classification of Diseases. Maternal near-miss rate (number of women experiencing an admission to intensive care units/all women with live or stillborn babies). A total of 1259 near-miss cases were identified and the total maternal near-miss rate was 2.0/1000 deliveries. Seventy percent of the women were admitted to intensive care units or coronary units after a cesarean section. The leading associated risk factors were obstetric hemorrhage/disseminated intravascular coagulation (40%) and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (29%). Monitoring of near-miss morbidity in conjunction with mortality surveillance could help to identify effective preventive measures for potentially life-threatening episodes.
Journal of Public Health, 2012
Abstract Aim To evaluate how researchers in the field of Public Health (PH) use graphical represe... more Abstract Aim To evaluate how researchers in the field of Public Health (PH) use graphical representations in the context of a scientific meeting. Subjects and methods We evaluated 159 graphs contained in the oral presentations given at the 2006 European Conference ...