PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Robin C. Fraser
TI  - The reliability and validity of the age-sex register as a population denominator in general practice
DP  - 1978 May 01
TA  - The Journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners
PG  - 283--286
VI  - 28
IP  - 190
4099  - http://bjgp.org/content/28/190/283.short
4100  - http://bjgp.org/content/28/190/283.full
SO  - J R Coll Gen Pract1978 May 01; 28
AB  - I report evidence which raises doubts about the reliability and validity of age-sex registers as true population denominators in general practice in the UK. These have potentially disturbing implications for the interpretation of data based on the presumed precision of age-sex registers. I am undertaking a prospective study to identify and quantify sources of inaccuracy to try to establish a method of estimating the true population at risk and its true age-sex characteristics. This would greatly enhance the utility of the age-sex register as the most valuable tool in general-practice research.