An Algorithm That Identifies Coronary and Heart Failure Events In The Electronic Health Record

The advent of universal health care coverage in the United States and electronic health records could make the medical record a valuable disease surveillance tool. The object of this project was to identify an algorithm that accurately categorizes acute coronary and heart failure events exclusively with electronic health record data so that the medical record can be used for surveillance without manual record review. Agreement (Cohen - Kappa) between manual review and an algorithm that uses IMO statements, troponin levels and echocardiographic data is 0.99 (95%CI 0.98-1.00). We conclude that surveillance based on electronic data alone is feasible