Studies of Health Insurance Claims Data in Japan

Zaber al Mamun ID: 2022676 Zaber00007@gmail.com

This scoping review analyzed studies that used Japanese healthcare claims data to understand how these
data sources are employed in healthcare research in Japan. The review covered a wide range of research
areas, providing valuable insights into the utilization of claims data in the country. The findings highlight
the significance of claims data in various healthcare research fields and their potential for informing
healthcare policy and management. Additionally, the review emphasizes the importance of sharing
information and methodologies among researchers to facilitate the appropriate use of claims data in
healthcare research and decision-making.
This introduction provides a clear rationale for conducting a scoping review of studies that use health
insurance claims data in healthcare research in Japan. It emphasizes the importance of understanding
disease and treatment patterns, as well as the advantages of using healthcare databases representing routine
clinical practice. The introduction outlines the various research areas in which claims data are employed
and their significance for informing Japanese healthcare policies. It also highlights the need for a
comprehensive review that covers a wide range of claims databases, target diseases, research themes, and
types of studies. This scoping review aims to address these gaps by systematically mapping the landscape
of studies using claims data in Japan.
The "Materials and Methods" section outlines the eligibility criteria, search and selection of sources, and
data items used in the scoping review of studies that use Japanese health insurance claims data. Here's a
summary of this section:
Eligibility Criteria:
Studies using Japanese health insurance claims data published after 2010 in Japanese or English were
included.
Excluded studies included those using only health checkup data or long-term care insurance claims data,
publicly available data freely available on the Internet, data combined with primary research, and not
original data (e.g., editorials, commentaries, reviews, and conference abstracts). Hospital-based studies
involving ten or fewer institutions were also excluded.
Studies comparing results of claims data with other data sources were included regardless of the number of
participating institutions.
Search and Selection:
Electronic sources like MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Ichushi-Web were searched up to April 2021.
A team of reviewers assessed titles and abstracts for inclusion, and full papers were assessed when eligibility
was unclear based on title and abstract.
Data were extracted from potentially eligible studies based on pre-defined categories.
Data Items and Synthesis:
Data were extracted on publication year, type of claims database, study setting, age of study sample, targeted
disease (ICD-10 chapter classification), and research theme.
The study characteristics, targeted diseases, and research themes were summarized by the type of claims
database.
Studies that aimed to assess the validity of claims data or compare results with other data sources were
included, and their results were described narratively.
The study adhered to the PRISMA-ScR reporting guideline.
This section provides a clear overview of the methods employed to conduct the scoping review and sets the
criteria for inclusion and exclusion of studies using claims data in Japan. It also outlines the search and
selection process and the data items collected from the included studies.

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