Weighted EHR-based prevalence estimates for hypertension at the state and local levels in Louisiana

Abstract Background Modernization of public health data systems is a national priority. Improved chronic disease surveillance can provide more timely, accurate, and local measures to inform public health policy and intervention. Although electronic health record (EHR) data have great potential for s...

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Main Authors: Wenjun Li, Meng Zhang, Jie Cheng, Sandra L. Jackson, Adam S. Vaughan, Michael Klompas, Thomas W. Carton, Elizabeth Nauman, Lee Mendoza, Arun Adhikari, Jeanie Donovan, Katherine H. Hohman
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-02-01
Series:BMC Public Health
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-025-21633-7
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author Wenjun Li
Meng Zhang
Jie Cheng
Sandra L. Jackson
Adam S. Vaughan
Michael Klompas
Thomas W. Carton
Elizabeth Nauman
Lee Mendoza
Arun Adhikari
Jeanie Donovan
Katherine H. Hohman
author_facet Wenjun Li
Meng Zhang
Jie Cheng
Sandra L. Jackson
Adam S. Vaughan
Michael Klompas
Thomas W. Carton
Elizabeth Nauman
Lee Mendoza
Arun Adhikari
Jeanie Donovan
Katherine H. Hohman
author_sort Wenjun Li
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background Modernization of public health data systems is a national priority. Improved chronic disease surveillance can provide more timely, accurate, and local measures to inform public health policy and intervention. Although electronic health record (EHR) data have great potential for surveillance, population coverage is non-random, which may result in biased estimates. Statistical approaches are needed to adjust estimates to represent the underlying population and validate the results against independent estimates. Methods MENDS, the Multi-State-EHR-Based Network for Disease Surveillance, uses EHR data to calculate chronic disease and risk factor prevalence metrics. In this study, we applied post-stratification weighting to MENDS data from nearly 800,000 adults from Louisiana to estimate the prevalence of hypertension and hypertension control at the state and parish (county-equivalent) levels during February 2023. We then compared weighted MENDS hypertension prevalence estimates with measures derived from traditional public health surveillance. Results Weighted MENDS hypertension prevalence estimates were approximately 10% lower than crude MENDS estimates, and approximately 13% higher than hypertension awareness estimates from the 2021 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, with similar geographic and demographic patterns. Weighted MENDS hypertension prevalence estimates indicated that 43.0% of Louisiana adult residents had hypertension (versus 47.7% crude prevalence). Prevalence was higher than the overall state estimate among men (47.3% weighted; 55.9% crude), Black patients (50.2% weighted; 55.7% crude), those receiving Medicare (70.6% weighted; 76.2% crude), and individuals living in rural areas (46.1% weighted; 49.8% crude). Hypertension prevalence increased with age and with more clinical visits during the previous 2 years. Hypertension prevalence was highest in the southeastern parishes near New Orleans and Baton Rouge. Demographic and geographic patterns in prevalence of hypertension control were like hypertension prevalence. Conclusions Post-stratification weighting of MENDS data brought EHR-based data estimates closer to survey-based estimates of hypertension and can improve representativeness of chronic disease indicators. These estimates can provide public health organizations with timely, accurate, and local information. Further, EHR-based systems can produce unique measures, such as the prevalence of hypertension control, which can provide a more nuanced understanding of community needs and help public health agencies evaluate the effectiveness of community interventions.
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spelling doaj-art-ff3bf4e12d174994bdcd81cc029b194d2025-02-09T12:58:10ZengBMCBMC Public Health1471-24582025-02-0125111510.1186/s12889-025-21633-7Weighted EHR-based prevalence estimates for hypertension at the state and local levels in LouisianaWenjun Li0Meng Zhang1Jie Cheng2Sandra L. Jackson3Adam S. Vaughan4Michael Klompas5Thomas W. Carton6Elizabeth Nauman7Lee Mendoza8Arun Adhikari9Jeanie Donovan10Katherine H. Hohman11Department of Public Health and Center for Health Statistics, University of Massachusetts LowellDepartment of Public Health and Center for Health Statistics, University of Massachusetts LowellDepartment of Public Health and Center for Health Statistics, University of Massachusetts LowellDivision for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and PreventionDivision for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and PreventionDepartment of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care InstituteLouisiana Public Health InstituteLouisiana Public Health InstituteLouisiana Department of Health, Office of Public HealthLouisiana Department of Health, Office of Public HealthNew Orleans Health DepartmentNational Association of Chronic Disease DirectorsAbstract Background Modernization of public health data systems is a national priority. Improved chronic disease surveillance can provide more timely, accurate, and local measures to inform public health policy and intervention. Although electronic health record (EHR) data have great potential for surveillance, population coverage is non-random, which may result in biased estimates. Statistical approaches are needed to adjust estimates to represent the underlying population and validate the results against independent estimates. Methods MENDS, the Multi-State-EHR-Based Network for Disease Surveillance, uses EHR data to calculate chronic disease and risk factor prevalence metrics. In this study, we applied post-stratification weighting to MENDS data from nearly 800,000 adults from Louisiana to estimate the prevalence of hypertension and hypertension control at the state and parish (county-equivalent) levels during February 2023. We then compared weighted MENDS hypertension prevalence estimates with measures derived from traditional public health surveillance. Results Weighted MENDS hypertension prevalence estimates were approximately 10% lower than crude MENDS estimates, and approximately 13% higher than hypertension awareness estimates from the 2021 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, with similar geographic and demographic patterns. Weighted MENDS hypertension prevalence estimates indicated that 43.0% of Louisiana adult residents had hypertension (versus 47.7% crude prevalence). Prevalence was higher than the overall state estimate among men (47.3% weighted; 55.9% crude), Black patients (50.2% weighted; 55.7% crude), those receiving Medicare (70.6% weighted; 76.2% crude), and individuals living in rural areas (46.1% weighted; 49.8% crude). Hypertension prevalence increased with age and with more clinical visits during the previous 2 years. Hypertension prevalence was highest in the southeastern parishes near New Orleans and Baton Rouge. Demographic and geographic patterns in prevalence of hypertension control were like hypertension prevalence. Conclusions Post-stratification weighting of MENDS data brought EHR-based data estimates closer to survey-based estimates of hypertension and can improve representativeness of chronic disease indicators. These estimates can provide public health organizations with timely, accurate, and local information. Further, EHR-based systems can produce unique measures, such as the prevalence of hypertension control, which can provide a more nuanced understanding of community needs and help public health agencies evaluate the effectiveness of community interventions.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-025-21633-7Electronic health recordsChronic diseaseHypertensionPopulation healthSurveillanceStatistics
spellingShingle Wenjun Li
Meng Zhang
Jie Cheng
Sandra L. Jackson
Adam S. Vaughan
Michael Klompas
Thomas W. Carton
Elizabeth Nauman
Lee Mendoza
Arun Adhikari
Jeanie Donovan
Katherine H. Hohman
Weighted EHR-based prevalence estimates for hypertension at the state and local levels in Louisiana
BMC Public Health
Electronic health records
Chronic disease
Hypertension
Population health
Surveillance
Statistics
title Weighted EHR-based prevalence estimates for hypertension at the state and local levels in Louisiana
title_full Weighted EHR-based prevalence estimates for hypertension at the state and local levels in Louisiana
title_fullStr Weighted EHR-based prevalence estimates for hypertension at the state and local levels in Louisiana
title_full_unstemmed Weighted EHR-based prevalence estimates for hypertension at the state and local levels in Louisiana
title_short Weighted EHR-based prevalence estimates for hypertension at the state and local levels in Louisiana
title_sort weighted ehr based prevalence estimates for hypertension at the state and local levels in louisiana
topic Electronic health records
Chronic disease
Hypertension
Population health
Surveillance
Statistics
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-025-21633-7
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