Are adverse events after carotid endarterectomy reported comparable in different registries?
OBJECTIVES: To assess the extent of discrepancies between different vascular registries, at various levels of validation, and to investigate whether such differences might alter the morbidity and mortality rates obtained from the gold standard dataset for carotid endarterectomy (CEA). METHODS: All CEA operations in Helsinki University Central Hospital from 2000-2005 were retrieved from the local vascular registry (HUSVASC) and the Hospital Discharge Registry (HILMO). Both registries were validated at different levels to form the final dataset. Total and indication-specific perioperative morbidity and mortality rates were estimated from each level of validation and compared with those from the final dataset and with pooled rates from systematic reviews. RESULTS: Initial search provided 675 and 681 CEAs from HUSVASC and HILMO, respectively, decreasing to 636 (94%) and 614 (90%) when using the specific operative codes for thrombendarterectomy and patch angioplasty. Manual verification of
