Commentary: verbal autopsies--from small-scale studies to mortality surveillance systems.

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Abstract
Reliable information on cause-specific mortality is crucial for summarizing the total disease burden in different settings. In addition, it is essential for evaluating the impact of public health interventions, and for identifying where resources need to be allocated. Yet in the countries with the highest burden of disease, cause-specific mortality data are usually of poor quality, incomplete, or unavailable. In the absence of vital registration data, the verbal autopsy may be used to estimate cause-specific mortality. Trained fieldworkers interview bereaved relatives using a questionnaire to elicit information on symptoms experienced by the deceased before death. Probable causes of death are assigned either by physician review of the completed questionnaires or using predefined diagnostic criteria given in an algorithm.