Table 1 Selected details of included studies

1

[20]

Belgium

1994-03

Truyers

A₂

Patients of 51 GPs

All

Notified by GPs

ICPC-code S70

NR

4.57 [4.31-4.79]

2

[21]

France

2009

Sentinel network (INVS)

A₂

454 active GPs (62 809 976 patients)

All

Weekly returns of all diagnoses

Individual GPs

992

5.52 [5.06-5.98]

3

[22]

France

2005-08

Gonzales-Chiappe

A₂

Patients of ~1200 GPs

All

Notified by GPs

Individual GPs

2375

3.82 [3.64-4.05]

4

[23]

France

2005

Mick

B₁

Patients of 231 GPs, 41 dermatologists, 15 neurologists

≥50y

Postal survey – cases seen in 2005

Individuals clinicians

777

8.99 [8.34-9.64]

5

[24]

France

1998

Czernichow

B₁

Patients of 744 GPs

All

Postal survey of GPs – cases seen in previous year

Individual GPs

605

3.20 [3.00-3.40]

6

[25]

Germany

2004

Schiffner-Rohe

B₂

120 399 patients

≥50y

Searches in computerized records

ICD-10

1176

9.80 [9.20-10.40]

7

[26]

Germany

1992-93

Paul

A₁

Population of Ansbach City (about 40 000 inhabitants)

All

All cases seen by GPs, dermatologists, pediatricians

Individual clinicians

152

2.26

8

[27]

Iceland

1990-95

Helgason

A₁

Patients of 62 GPs (out of 150 GPs in Iceland)

All

Notified by GPs

Individual GPs

462

2.00 [1.80-2.20]

9

[28]

Iceland

1990-95

Petursson^c

A₁

Patients of 62 GPs

<20y

Notified by GPs

Individual GPs

118

1.60

10

[29]

Italy

2003-05

EmbertiGialloreti

B₂

Patients of 342 GPs (0.8% of Italian GPs) (450 000 patients)

≥15y

Searches in computerized records

ICD-9

5675

4.31 [4.11-4.52]

11

[30]

Italy

2004

Di Legami

A₁

Population of Piemonte (26 934 patients)

≥14y

Notified by GPs

Individual GPs

46

1.74 [1.28-2.32]

12

[31]

Netherlands

2001

Opstelten

A₁

104 GPs (about 390 000 patients)

All

Notified by GPs

Individual GPs

1080

3.20 [3.00-3.40]

13

[32]

Netherlands

1998-01

de Melker

B₁

Patients of 43 GPs (about 1% of the Dutch population)

All

Notified by GPs

Individual GPs

NR

3.25

14

[33]

Netherlands

1994-99

Opstelten

B₂

22 GPs in six areas (about 49 000 patients)

All

Searches in computerized records

Individual GPs

837

3.40 [2.90-3.90]

15

[34]

Spain

2007

Cebrian-Cuenca

A₁

24 GPs in Valencia community (about 36 030 patients > 14y)

>14y

Notified by GPs

Individual GPs

146

4.10 [3.40-4.70]

16

[35]

Spain

2005-06

Garcia-Cenoz

B₂

Patients of GPs in Navarre

All

Searches in computerized records

ICD-10

4959

4.15

17

[36]

Switzerland

1998-01

Richard

A₂

Patients of 250 physicians (GPs, pediatricians, physicians of internal medicine)

All

Notified by physicians

Individual clinicians

2236

2.36

18

[37]

UK

2000-06

Gauthier

B₂

603 GPs Research Database (GPRD) (3 million of patients)

≥50y

Searches in computerized records

ICD-10, first episode

25 002

5.23 [2.17-5.29]

19

[38]

UK

1947-72

Hope-Simpson

B₁

GPs in Cirencester (about 3700 patients)

All

All recorded cases

NR

321

3.40

20

[39]

UK

1994-01

Fleming

B₂

Up to 91 GPs (RCGP) (About 200 000 patients)

All

Weekly returns of all diagnoses

Individual GPs

14 532

3.20

21

[40]

UK

1991-00

Brisson

B₂

69 GPs in England & Wales (~570000 patients)

All

Searches in computerized records

ICD-9

112 409

3.73