ArticleBMC public health2019
Calculating incidence rates and prevalence proportions: not as simple as it seems.
Article in BMC public health, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 75 papers, 10 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
75 citing papers in PubMed, 10 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Epidemiology and transmission dynamics of Trichomonas vaginalis infection among Iranian women: A framework for targeted public health interventions.Parasitology research · 2026Pooled it
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- Safety profiles of bone-conduction hearing implants revisited: A meta-analytic comparison adjusted for follow-up time.European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology : official journal of the European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - Head and Neck Surgery · 2025Pooled it
- A systematic review on the impact of sub-epidermal moisture assessments on pressure ulcer/injury care delivery pathways.International wound journal · 2024Pooled it
- Probability of sporadic lymphangioleiomyomatosis in women presenting with spontaneous pneumothorax.Orphanet journal of rare diseases · 2023Pooled it
- A systematic review of methods to estimate colorectal cancer incidence using population-based cancer registries.BMC medical research methodology · 2022Pooled it
- Methodological approaches to measuring the incidence of unplanned emergency department presentations by cancer patients receiving systemic anti-cancer therapy: a systematic review.BMC medical research methodology · 2022Pooled it
- The incidence and mortality of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Indonesia: A systematic review and meta-analysis.PloS one · 2022Pooled it
- Non-Invasive Multimodal Neuromonitoring in Non-Critically Ill Hospitalized Adult Patients With COVID-19: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Frontiers in neurology · 2022Pooled it
- Prevalence of mental health problems and sleep disturbances in nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Nurse education in practice · 2021Pooled it
- Characteristics and Prediction Accuracy According to Corneal Stiffness in Suspected Keratoconus.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Nocturnal warming and emergency department admissions: a nationwide association and projection study in Singapore.BMC emergency medicine · 2026Article
- The incidence of dementia in populations around the globe.Current opinion in psychiatry · 2026Review
- Mortality patterns in multimorbid populations: cross-sectional population-wide analysis of Czech national registry data, 2014-2023.BMJ open · 2026Article
- Global prevalence of different levels of anxiety and stress symptoms in healthcare students: A meta-analysis and meta-regression.Annals of general psychiatry · 2026Article
- Data From a Tertiary Care Center Reveal the Prevalence of Hepatitis B Among the Visiting Population.Cureus · 2026Article
- Asthma and chronic obstructive disease overlap (ACO), a systematic review of prevalence and co-morbidity factors based on diagnostic criteria.Journal of pharmaceutical policy and practice · 2026Review
- Patient roadmap and economic burden of chronic tick-borne illness and post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome in Ireland, and public health issues arising.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- "Trouble switching off": negotiating sleep, screens, and digital device use among young adults.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Disease burden of influenza in Spain: A five-season study (2015-2020).Human vaccines & immunotherapeutics · 2025Article
15 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundIncidence rates and prevalence proportions are commonly used to express the populations health status. Since there are several methods used to calculate these epidemiological measures, good comparison between studies and countries is difficult. This study investigates the impact of different operational definitions of numerators and denominators on incidence rates and prevalence proportions.
methodsData from routine electronic health records of general practices contributing to NIVEL Primary Care Database was used. Incidence rates were calculated using different denominators (person-years at-risk, person-years and midterm population). Three different prevalence proportions were determined: 1 year period prevalence proportions, point-prevalence proportions and contact prevalence proportions.
resultsOne year period prevalence proportions were substantially higher than point-prevalence (58.3 - 206.6%) for long-lasting diseases, and one year period prevalence proportions were higher than contact prevalence proportions (26.2 - 79.7%). For incidence rates, the use of different denominators resulted in small differences between the different calculation methods (-1.3 - 14.8%). Using person-years at-risk or a midterm population resulted in higher rates compared to using person-years.
conclusionsAll different operational definitions affect incidence rates and prevalence proportions to some extent. Therefore, it is important that the terminology and methodology is well described by sources reporting these epidemiological measures. When comparing incidence rates and prevalence proportions from different sources, it is important to be aware of the operational definitions applied and their impact.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.