Influence of initial misdiagnosis on mortality in patients with bacteraemia: propensity score matching and propensity score weighting analyses.

Background: The diagnostic process is a key element of medicine but it is complex and prone to errors. Infectious diseases are one of the three categories of diseases in which diagnostic errors can be most harmful to patients. In this study we aimed to estimate the effect of initial misdiagnosis of the source of infection in patients with bacteraemia on 14 day mortality using propensity score methods to adjust for confounding.

Quality of Conduct and Reporting of Propensity Score Methods in Studies Investigating the Effectiveness of Antimicrobial Therapy.

Background: Propensity score methods are becoming increasingly popular in infectious disease medicine to correct for confounding in observational studies. However, applying and reporting propensity score techniques correctly requires substantial knowledge of these methods. The quality of conduct and reporting of propensity score methods in studies investigating the effectiveness of antimicrobial therapy is yet undetermined.