The confinement of a patient in a hospital.

The period of confinement of a patient to a hospital or other health facility.

Studies used to test etiologic hypotheses in which inferences about an exposure to putative causal factors are derived from data relating to characteristics of persons under study or to events or experiences in their past. The essential feature is that some of the persons under study have the disease or outcome of interest and their characteristics are compared with those of unaffected persons.

An aspect of personal behavior or lifestyle, environmental exposure, or inborn or inherited characteristic, which, on the basis of epidemiologic evidence, is known to be associated with a health-related condition considered important to prevent.

The administrative process of discharging the patient, alive or dead, from hospitals or other health facilities.

Subsequent admissions of a patient to a hospital or other health care institution for treatment.

A heterogeneous condition in which the heart is unable to pump out sufficient blood to meet the metabolic need of the body. Heart failure can be caused by structural defects, functional abnormalities (VENTRICULAR DYSFUNCTION), or a sudden overload beyond its capacity. Chronic heart failure is more common than acute heart failure which results from sudden insult to cardiac function, such as MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION.

Studies in which subsets of a defined population are identified. These groups may or may not be exposed to factors hypothesized to influence the probability of the occurrence of a particular disease or other outcome. Cohorts are defined populations which, as a whole, are followed in an attempt to determine distinguishing subgroup characteristics.

Evaluation undertaken to assess the results or consequences of management and procedures used in combating disease in order to determine the efficacy, effectiveness, safety, and practicability of these interventions in individual cases or series.

Observation of a population for a sufficient number of persons over a sufficient number of years to generate incidence or mortality rates subsequent to the selection of the study group.

The number of new cases of a given disease during a given period in a specified population. It also is used for the rate at which new events occur in a defined population. It is differentiated from PREVALENCE, which refers to all cases, new or old, in the population at a given time.

The expenses incurred by a hospital in providing care. The hospital costs attributed to a particular patient care episode include the direct costs plus an appropriate proportion of the overhead for administration, personnel, building maintenance, equipment, etc. Hospital costs are one of the factors which determine HOSPITAL CHARGES (the price the hospital sets for its services).

An infant during the first month after birth.

The actual costs of providing services related to the delivery of health care, including the costs of procedures, therapies, and medications. It is differentiated from HEALTH EXPENDITURES, which refers to the amount of money paid for the services, and from fees, which refers to the amount charged, regardless of cost.

Studies in which individuals or populations are followed to assess the outcome of exposures, procedures, or effects of a characteristic, e.g., occurrence of disease.

The process of accepting patients. The concept includes patients accepted for medical and nursing care in a hospital or other health care institution.

Child hospitalized for short term care.

Health care services provided to patients on an ambulatory basis, rather than by admission to a hospital or other health care facility. The services may be a part of a hospital, augmenting its inpatient services, or may be provided at a free-standing facility.

Elements of limited time intervals, contributing to particular results or situations.

Infection of the lung often accompanied by inflammation.

Persons admitted to health facilities which provide board and room, for the purpose of observation, care, diagnosis or treatment.

The presence of co-existing or additional diseases with reference to an initial diagnosis or with reference to the index condition that is the subject of study. Comorbidity may affect the ability of affected individuals to function and also their survival; it may be used as a prognostic indicator for length of hospital stay, cost factors, and outcome or survival.

The frequency of different ages or age groups in a given population. The distribution may refer to either how many or what proportion of the group. The population is usually patients with a specific disease but the concept is not restricted to humans and is not restricted to medicine.

A vital statistic measuring or recording the rate of death from any cause in hospitalized populations.

Age as a constituent element or influence contributing to the production of a result. It may be applicable to the cause or the effect of a circumstance. It is used with human or animal concepts but should be differentiated from AGING, a physiological process, and TIME FACTORS which refers only to the passage of time.

An acute viral infection in humans involving the respiratory tract. It is marked by inflammation of the NASAL MUCOSA; the PHARYNX; and conjunctiva, and by headache and severe, often generalized, myalgia.

Levels within a diagnostic group which are established by various measurement criteria applied to the seriousness of a patient's disorder.

The prices a hospital sets for its services. HOSPITAL COSTS (the direct and indirect expenses incurred by the hospital in providing the services) are one factor in the determination of hospital charges. Other factors may include, for example, profits, competition, and the necessity of recouping the costs of uncompensated care.

Hospital department responsible for the administration and provision of immediate medical or surgical care to the emergency patient.

Federal program, created by Public Law 89-97, Title XVIII-Health Insurance for the Aged, a 1965 amendment to the Social Security Act, that provides health insurance benefits to persons over the age of 65 and others eligible for Social Security benefits. It consists of two separate but coordinated programs: hospital insurance (MEDICARE PART A) and supplementary medical insurance (MEDICARE PART B). (Hospital Administration Terminology, AHA, 2d ed and A Discursive Dictionary of Health Care, US House of Representatives, 1976)

Divisions of the year according to some regularly recurrent phenomena usually astronomical or climatic. (From McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 6th ed)

The qualitative or quantitative estimation of the likelihood of adverse effects that may result from exposure to specified health hazards or from the absence of beneficial influences. (Last, Dictionary of Epidemiology, 1988)

Special hospitals which provide care to the mentally ill patient.

The personal cost of acute or chronic disease. The cost to the patient may be an economic, social, or psychological cost or personal loss to self, family, or immediate community. The cost of illness may be reflected in absenteeism, productivity, response to treatment, peace of mind, or QUALITY OF LIFE. It differs from HEALTH CARE COSTS, meaning the societal cost of providing services related to the delivery of health care, rather than personal impact on individuals.

INFLAMMATION of any segment of the GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT from ESOPHAGUS to RECTUM. Causes of gastroenteritis are many including genetic, infection, HYPERSENSITIVITY, drug effects, and CANCER.

Statistical models which describe the relationship between a qualitative dependent variable (that is, one which can take only certain discrete values, such as the presence or absence of a disease) and an independent variable. A common application is in epidemiology for estimating an individual's risk (probability of a disease) as a function of a given risk factor.

Infection with any of the rotaviruses. Specific infections include human infantile diarrhea, neonatal calf diarrhea, and epidemic diarrhea of infant mice.

Statistical models used in survival analysis that assert that the effect of the study factors on the hazard rate in the study population is multiplicative and does not change over time.

Extensive collections, reputedly complete, of facts and data garnered from material of a specialized subject area and made available for analysis and application. The collection can be automated by various contemporary methods for retrieval. The concept should be differentiated from DATABASES, BIBLIOGRAPHIC which is restricted to collections of bibliographic references.

Health insurance providing benefits to cover or partly cover hospital expenses.

Disease having a short and relatively severe course.

A set of techniques used when variation in several variables has to be studied simultaneously. In statistics, multivariate analysis is interpreted as any analytic method that allows simultaneous study of two or more dependent variables.

A distribution function used to describe the occurrence of rare events or to describe the sampling distribution of isolated counts in a continuum of time or space.

Absolute, comparative, or differential costs pertaining to services, institutions, resources, etc., or the analysis and study of these costs.

Pneumovirus infections caused by the RESPIRATORY SYNCYTIAL VIRUSES. Humans and cattle are most affected but infections in goats and sheep have been reported.

The number of males and females in a given population. The distribution may refer to how many men or women or what proportion of either in the group. The population is usually patients with a specific disease but the concept is not restricted to humans and is not restricted to medicine.

Vaccines or candidate vaccines used to prevent infection with ROTAVIRUS.

Inflammation of the BRONCHIOLES.

A method of comparing the cost of a program with its expected benefits in dollars (or other currency). The benefit-to-cost ratio is a measure of total return expected per unit of money spent. This analysis generally excludes consideration of factors that are not measured ultimately in economic terms. Cost effectiveness compares alternative ways to achieve a specific set of results.

The systems and processes involved in the establishment, support, management, and operation of registers, e.g., disease registers.

A prediction of the probable outcome of a disease based on a individual's condition and the usual course of the disease as seen in similar situations.

Ongoing scrutiny of a population (general population, study population, target population, etc.), generally using methods distinguished by their practicability, uniformity, and frequently their rapidity, rather than by complete accuracy.

A system of categories to which morbid entries are assigned according to established criteria. Included is the entire range of conditions in a manageable number of categories, grouped to facilitate mortality reporting. It is produced by the World Health Organization (From ICD-10, p1). The Clinical Modifications, produced by the UNITED STATES DEPT. OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, are larger extensions used for morbidity and general epidemiological purposes, primarily in the U.S.

Diseases which have one or more of the following characteristics: they are permanent, leave residual disability, are caused by nonreversible pathological alteration, require special training of the patient for rehabilitation, or may be expected to require a long period of supervision, observation, or care. (Dictionary of Health Services Management, 2d ed)

Maleness or femaleness as a constituent element or influence contributing to the production of a result. It may be applicable to the cause or effect of a circumstance. It is used with human or animal concepts but should be differentiated from SEX CHARACTERISTICS, anatomical or physiological manifestations of sex, and from SEX DISTRIBUTION, the number of males and females in given circumstances.

A form of bronchial disorder with three distinct components: airway hyper-responsiveness (RESPIRATORY HYPERSENSITIVITY), airway INFLAMMATION, and intermittent AIRWAY OBSTRUCTION. It is characterized by spasmodic contraction of airway smooth muscle, WHEEZING, and dyspnea (DYSPNEA, PAROXYSMAL).

The proportion of patients with a particular disease during a given year per given unit of population.

An organized procedure carried out through committees to review admissions, duration of stay, professional services furnished, and to evaluate the medical necessity of those services and promote their most efficient use.

Research aimed at assessing the quality and effectiveness of health care as measured by the attainment of a specified end result or outcome. Measures include parameters such as improved health, lowered morbidity or mortality, and improvement of abnormal states (such as elevated blood pressure).

A disease of chronic diffuse irreversible airflow obstruction. Subcategories of COPD include CHRONIC BRONCHITIS and PULMONARY EMPHYSEMA.

The total number of cases of a given disease in a specified population at a designated time. It is differentiated from INCIDENCE, which refers to the number of new cases in the population at a given time.

NECROSIS of the MYOCARDIUM caused by an obstruction of the blood supply to the heart (CORONARY CIRCULATION).

Damage inflicted on the body as the direct or indirect result of an external force, with or without disruption of structural continuity.

Excessive, under or unnecessary utilization of health services by patients or physicians.

Procedures for finding the mathematical function which best describes the relationship between a dependent variable and one or more independent variables. In linear regression (see LINEAR MODELS) the relationship is constrained to be a straight line and LEAST-SQUARES ANALYSIS is used to determine the best fit. In logistic regression (see LOGISTIC MODELS) the dependent variable is qualitative rather than continuously variable and LIKELIHOOD FUNCTIONS are used to find the best relationship. In multiple regression, the dependent variable is considered to depend on more than a single independent variable.

Services for the diagnosis and treatment of disease and the maintenance of health.

The ratio of two odds. The exposure-odds ratio for case control data is the ratio of the odds in favor of exposure among cases to the odds in favor of exposure among noncases. The disease-odds ratio for a cohort or cross section is the ratio of the odds in favor of disease among the exposed to the odds in favor of disease among the unexposed. The prevalence-odds ratio refers to an odds ratio derived cross-sectionally from studies of prevalent cases.

Any infection acquired in the community, that is, contrasted with those acquired in a health care facility (CROSS INFECTION). An infection would be classified as community-acquired if the patient had not recently been in a health care facility or been in contact with someone who had been recently in a health care facility.

The probability that an event will occur. It encompasses a variety of measures of the probability of a generally unfavorable outcome.

Facilities which provide nursing supervision and limited medical care to persons who do not require hospitalization.

Review of claims by insurance companies to determine liability and amount of payment for various services. The review may also include determination of eligibility of the claimant or beneficiary or of the provider of the benefit; determination that the benefit is covered or not payable under another policy; or determination that the service was necessary and of reasonable cost and quality.

Reductions in all or any portion of the costs of providing goods or services. Savings may be incurred by the provider or the consumer.

A class of statistical procedures for estimating the survival function (function of time, starting with a population 100% well at a given time and providing the percentage of the population still well at later times). The survival analysis is then used for making inferences about the effects of treatments, prognostic factors, exposures, and other covariates on the function.

Invasion of the host RESPIRATORY SYSTEM by microorganisms, usually leading to pathological processes or diseases.

A nonparametric method of compiling LIFE TABLES or survival tables. It combines calculated probabilities of survival and estimates to allow for observations occurring beyond a measurement threshold, which are assumed to occur randomly. Time intervals are defined as ending each time an event occurs and are therefore unequal. (From Last, A Dictionary of Epidemiology, 1995)

Social and economic factors that characterize the individual or group within the social structure.

Parliamentary democracy located between France on the northeast and Portugual on the west and bordered by the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.

A range of values for a variable of interest, e.g., a rate, constructed so that this range has a specified probability of including the true value of the variable.

In screening and diagnostic tests, the probability that a person with a positive test is a true positive (i.e., has the disease), is referred to as the predictive value of a positive test; whereas, the predictive value of a negative test is the probability that the person with a negative test does not have the disease. Predictive value is related to the sensitivity and specificity of the test.

Therapy for the insufficient cleansing of the BLOOD by the kidneys based on dialysis and including hemodialysis, PERITONEAL DIALYSIS, and HEMODIAFILTRATION.

The largest country in North America, comprising 10 provinces and three territories. Its capital is Ottawa.

Available manpower, facilities, revenue, equipment, and supplies to produce requisite health care and services.

A distribution in which a variable is distributed like the sum of the squares of any given independent random variable, each of which has a normal distribution with mean of zero and variance of one. The chi-square test is a statistical test based on comparison of a test statistic to a chi-square distribution. The oldest of these tests are used to detect whether two or more population distributions differ from one another.

The proportion of survivors in a group, e.g., of patients, studied and followed over a period, or the proportion of persons in a specified group alive at the beginning of a time interval who survive to the end of the interval. It is often studied using life table methods.

Hospitals controlled by various types of government, i.e., city, county, district, state or federal.

A subtype of INFLUENZA A VIRUS with the surface proteins hemagglutinin 1 and neuraminidase 1. The H1N1 subtype was responsible for the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918.

Extended care facilities which provide skilled nursing care or rehabilitation services for inpatients on a daily basis.

Special hospitals which provide care for ill children.

Institutions with an organized medical staff which provide medical care to patients.

Invasion of the host organism by microorganisms that can cause pathological conditions or diseases.

Substances that reduce the growth or reproduction of BACTERIA.

The integration of epidemiologic, sociological, economic, and other analytic sciences in the study of health services. Health services research is usually concerned with relationships between need, demand, supply, use, and outcome of health services. The aim of the research is evaluation, particularly in terms of structure, process, output, and outcome. (From Last, Dictionary of Epidemiology, 2d ed)

Federal program, created by Public Law 89-97, Title XIX, a 1965 amendment to the Social Security Act, administered by the states, that provides health care benefits to indigent and medically indigent persons.

Epidemics of infectious disease that have spread to many countries, often more than one continent, and usually affecting a large number of people.

Vaccines used to prevent infection by viruses in the family ORTHOMYXOVIRIDAE. It includes both killed and attenuated vaccines. The composition of the vaccines is changed each year in response to antigenic shifts and changes in prevalence of influenza virus strains. The vaccine is usually bivalent or trivalent, containing one or two INFLUENZAVIRUS A strains and one INFLUENZAVIRUS B strain.

The end-stage of CHRONIC RENAL INSUFFICIENCY. It is characterized by the severe irreversible kidney damage (as measured by the level of PROTEINURIA) and the reduction in GLOMERULAR FILTRATION RATE to less than 15 ml per min (Kidney Foundation: Kidney Disease Outcome Quality Initiative, 2002). These patients generally require HEMODIALYSIS or KIDNEY TRANSPLANTATION.

A condition or physical state produced by the ingestion, injection, inhalation of or exposure to a deleterious agent.

Community health and NURSING SERVICES providing coordinated multiple services to the patient at the patient's homes. These home-care services are provided by a visiting nurse, home health agencies, HOSPITALS, or organized community groups using professional staff for care delivery. It differs from HOME NURSING which is provided by non-professionals.

Studies which start with the identification of persons with a disease of interest and a control (comparison, referent) group without the disease. The relationship of an attribute to the disease is examined by comparing diseased and non-diseased persons with regard to the frequency or levels of the attribute in each group.

Costs which are directly identifiable with a particular service.

The amount that a health care institution or organization pays for its drugs. It is one component of the final price that is charged to the consumer (FEES, PHARMACEUTICAL or PRESCRIPTION FEES).

Pathologic processes that affect patients after a surgical procedure. They may or may not be related to the disease for which the surgery was done, and they may or may not be direct results of the surgery.

Persons who receive ambulatory care at an outpatient department or clinic without room and board being provided.

A group of pathological conditions characterized by sudden, non-convulsive loss of neurological function due to BRAIN ISCHEMIA or INTRACRANIAL HEMORRHAGES. Stroke is classified by the type of tissue NECROSIS, such as the anatomic location, vasculature involved, etiology, age of the affected individual, and hemorrhagic vs. non-hemorrhagic nature. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, pp777-810)

Studies in which variables relating to an individual or group of individuals are assessed over a period of time.

Studies in which the presence or absence of disease or other health-related variables are determined in each member of the study population or in a representative sample at one particular time. This contrasts with LONGITUDINAL STUDIES which are followed over a period of time.

The return of a sign, symptom, or disease after a remission.

An acute inflammatory disease of the lower RESPIRATORY TRACT, caused by paramyxoviruses, occurring primarily in infants and young children; the viruses most commonly implicated are PARAINFLUENZA VIRUS TYPE 3; RESPIRATORY SYNCYTIAL VIRUS, HUMAN; and METAPNEUMOVIRUS.

A system for classifying patient care by relating common characteristics such as diagnosis, treatment, and age to an expected consumption of hospital resources and length of stay. Its purpose is to provide a framework for specifying case mix and to reduce hospital costs and reimbursements and it forms the cornerstone of the prospective payment system.

Persons including soldiers involved with the armed forces.

Former members of the armed services.

Any infection which a patient contracts in a health-care institution.

Hospital units providing continuous surveillance and care to acutely ill patients.

A method of studying a drug or procedure in which both the subjects and investigators are kept unaware of who is actually getting which specific treatment.

Factors which produce cessation of all vital bodily functions. They can be analyzed from an epidemiologic viewpoint.

Inflammation of the lung parenchyma that is caused by a viral infection.

Hospitals located in metropolitan areas.

The amounts spent by individuals, groups, nations, or private or public organizations for total health care and/or its various components. These amounts may or may not be equivalent to the actual costs (HEALTH CARE COSTS) and may or may not be shared among the patient, insurers, and/or employers.

Research techniques that focus on study designs and data gathering methods in human and animal populations.

Compilations of data on hospital activities and programs; excludes patient medical records.

Psychiatric illness or diseases manifested by breakdowns in the adaptational process expressed primarily as abnormalities of thought, feeling, and behavior producing either distress or impairment of function.

A province of Canada lying between the provinces of Manitoba and Quebec. Its capital is Toronto. It takes its name from Lake Ontario which is said to represent the Iroquois oniatariio, beautiful lake. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p892 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p391)

Heart failure caused by abnormal myocardial contraction during SYSTOLE leading to defective cardiac emptying.

An abnormal elevation of body temperature, usually as a result of a pathologic process.

The care and treatment of a convalescent patient, especially that of a patient after surgery.

Geriatric long-term care facilities which provide supervision and assistance in activities of daily living with medical and nursing services when required.

A generic concept reflecting concern with the modification and enhancement of life attributes, e.g., physical, political, moral and social environment; the overall condition of a human life.

Health insurance plans intended to reduce unnecessary health care costs through a variety of mechanisms, including: economic incentives for physicians and patients to select less costly forms of care; programs for reviewing the medical necessity of specific services; increased beneficiary cost sharing; controls on inpatient admissions and lengths of stay; the establishment of cost-sharing incentives for outpatient surgery; selective contracting with health care providers; and the intensive management of high-cost health care cases. The programs may be provided in a variety of settings, such as HEALTH MAINTENANCE ORGANIZATIONS and PREFERRED PROVIDER ORGANIZATIONS.

The degree to which individuals are inhibited or facilitated in their ability to gain entry to and to receive care and services from the health care system. Factors influencing this ability include geographic, architectural, transportational, and financial considerations, among others.

Sudden increase in the incidence of a disease. The concept includes EPIDEMICS and PANDEMICS.

Works about clinical trials that involve at least one test treatment and one control treatment, concurrent enrollment and follow-up of the test- and control-treated groups, and in which the treatments to be administered are selected by a random process, such as the use of a random-numbers table.

A state in western Australia. Its capital is Perth. It was first visited by the Dutch in 1616 but the English took possession in 1791 and permanent colonization began in 1829. It was a penal settlement 1850-1888, became part of the colonial government in 1886, and was granted self government in 1890. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p1329)

Administration of vaccines to stimulate the host's immune response. This includes any preparation intended for active immunological prophylaxis.

Disorders that result from the intended use of PHARMACEUTICAL PREPARATIONS. Included in this heading are a broad variety of chemically-induced adverse conditions due to toxicity, DRUG INTERACTIONS, and metabolic effects of pharmaceuticals.

A highly contagious infectious disease caused by the varicella-zoster virus (HERPESVIRUS 3, HUMAN). It usually affects children, is spread by direct contact or respiratory route via droplet nuclei, and is characterized by the appearance on the skin and mucous membranes of successive crops of typical pruritic vesicular lesions that are easily broken and become scabbed. Chickenpox is relatively benign in children, but may be complicated by pneumonia and encephalitis in adults. (From Dorland, 27th ed)

A province of Canada, lying between the provinces of Alberta and Manitoba. Its capital is Regina. It is entirely a plains region with prairie in the south and wooded country with many lakes and swamps in the north. The name was taken from the Saskatchewan River from the Cree name Kisiskatchewani Sipi, meaning rapid-flowing river. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p1083 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p486)

Infections by bacteria, general or unspecified.

Hospitals maintained by a university for the teaching of medical students, postgraduate training programs, and clinical research.

Recording of pertinent information concerning patient's illness or illnesses.

Pathological conditions involving the CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM including the HEART; the BLOOD VESSELS; or the PERICARDIUM.

A province of Canada, lying between the provinces of Saskatchewan and Ontario. Its capital is Winnipeg. Taking its name from Lake Manitoba, itself named for one of its islands, the name derived from Algonquian Manitou, great spirit. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p724 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p332)

The levels of excellence which characterize the health service or health care provided based on accepted standards of quality.

Services for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases in the aged and the maintenance of health in the elderly.

Predetermined sets of questions used to collect data - clinical data, social status, occupational group, etc. The term is often applied to a self-completed survey instrument.

A province of eastern Canada. Its capital is Quebec. The region belonged to France from 1627 to 1763 when it was lost to the British. The name is from the Algonquian quilibek meaning the place where waters narrow, referring to the gradually narrowing channel of the St. Lawrence or to the narrows of the river at Cape Diamond. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p993 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p440)

A broad approach to appropriate coordination of the entire disease treatment process that often involves shifting away from more expensive inpatient and acute care to areas such as preventive medicine, patient counseling and education, and outpatient care. This concept includes implications of appropriate versus inappropriate therapy on the overall cost and clinical outcome of a particular disease. (From Hosp Pharm 1995 Jul;30(7):596)

An interval of care by a health care facility or provider for a specific medical problem or condition. It may be continuous or it may consist of a series of intervals marked by one or more brief separations from care, and can also identify the sequence of care (e.g., emergency, inpatient, outpatient), thus serving as one measure of health care provided.

Health care provided on a continuing basis from the initial contact, following the patient through all phases of medical care.

All deaths reported in a given population.

Inflammation of the lung parenchyma that is caused by bacterial infections.

The smallest continent and an independent country, comprising six states and two territories. Its capital is Canberra.

Insurance providing coverage of medical, surgical, or hospital care in general or for which there is no specific heading.

Drugs that bind to but do not activate beta-adrenergic receptors thereby blocking the actions of beta-adrenergic agonists. Adrenergic beta-antagonists are used for treatment of hypertension, cardiac arrhythmias, angina pectoris, glaucoma, migraine headaches, and anxiety.

Presence of pus in a hollow organ or body cavity.

A heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by HYPERGLYCEMIA and GLUCOSE INTOLERANCE.

DIARRHEA occurring in infants from newborn to 24-months old.

Voluntary cooperation of the patient in following a prescribed regimen.

Evaluation of the level of physical, physiological, or mental functioning in the older population group.

Statistical measures of utilization and other aspects of the provision of health care services including hospitalization and ambulatory care.

Conditions or pathological processes associated with the disease of diabetes mellitus. Due to the impaired control of BLOOD GLUCOSE level in diabetic patients, pathological processes develop in numerous tissues and organs including the EYE, the KIDNEY, the BLOOD VESSELS, and the NERVE TISSUE.

Statistical models in which the value of a parameter for a given value of a factor is assumed to be equal to a + bx, where a and b are constants. The models predict a linear regression.

An increased liquidity or decreased consistency of FECES, such as running stool. Fecal consistency is related to the ratio of water-holding capacity of insoluble solids to total water, rather than the amount of water present. Diarrhea is not hyperdefecation or increased fecal weight.

The level of health of the individual, group, or population as subjectively assessed by the individual or by more objective measures.

A country in western Europe bordered by the Atlantic Ocean, the English Channel, the Mediterranean Sea, and the countries of Belgium, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, the principalities of Andorra and Monaco, and by the duchy of Luxembourg. Its capital is Paris.

Payment by a third-party payer in a sum equal to the amount expended by a health care provider or facility for health services rendered to an insured or program beneficiary. (From Facts on File Dictionary of Health Care Management, 1988)

An episode of MYOCARDIAL ISCHEMIA that generally lasts longer than a transient anginal episode that ultimately may lead to MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION.

Measurable and quantifiable biological parameters (e.g., specific enzyme concentration, specific hormone concentration, specific gene phenotype distribution in a population, presence of biological substances) which serve as indices for health- and physiology-related assessments, such as disease risk, psychiatric disorders, environmental exposure and its effects, disease diagnosis, metabolic processes, substance abuse, pregnancy, cell line development, epidemiologic studies, etc.

Method of charging whereby a physician or other practitioner bills for each encounter or service rendered. In addition to physicians, other health care professionals are reimbursed via this mechanism. Fee-for-service plans contrast with salary, per capita, and prepayment systems, where the payment does not change with the number of services actually used or if none are used. (From Discursive Dictionary of Health Care, 1976)

Care which provides integrated, accessible health care services by clinicians who are accountable for addressing a large majority of personal health care needs, developing a sustained partnership with patients, and practicing in the context of family and community. (JAMA 1995;273(3):192)

Older adults or aged individuals who are lacking in general strength and are unusually susceptible to disease or to other infirmity.

Interfacility or intrahospital transfer of patients. Intrahospital transfer is usually to obtain a specific kind of care and interfacility transfer is usually for economic reasons as well as for the type of care provided.

Abnormal cardiac rhythm that is characterized by rapid, uncoordinated firing of electrical impulses in the upper chambers of the heart (HEART ATRIA). In such case, blood cannot be effectively pumped into the lower chambers of the heart (HEART VENTRICLES). It is caused by abnormal impulse generation.

An anatomic severity scale based on the Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) and developed specifically to score multiple traumatic injuries. It has been used as a predictor of mortality.

The performance of the basic activities of self care, such as dressing, ambulation, or eating.

Statistical models of the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services, as well as of financial considerations. For the application of statistics to the testing and quantifying of economic theories MODELS, ECONOMETRIC is available.

A province of Canada on the Pacific coast. Its capital is Victoria. The name given in 1858 derives from the Columbia River which was named by the American captain Robert Gray for his ship Columbia which in turn was named for Columbus. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p178 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p81-2)

The inhabitants of a city or town, including metropolitan areas and suburban areas.

A febrile disease caused by STREPTOCOCCUS PNEUMONIAE.

Organized collections of computer records, standardized in format and content, that are stored in any of a variety of computer-readable modes. They are the basic sets of data from which computer-readable files are created. (from ALA Glossary of Library and Information Science, 1983)

Drugs that are used to treat asthma.

The presence of viable bacteria circulating in the blood. Fever, chills, tachycardia, and tachypnea are common acute manifestations of bacteremia. The majority of cases are seen in already hospitalized patients, most of whom have underlying diseases or procedures which render their bloodstreams susceptible to invasion.

Services specifically designed, staffed, and equipped for the emergency care of patients.