Diagnostics

Parts of this site were developed with help from the National electronic Library of Health (NeLH).

Web essay on diagnostic tests Glossary of terms Library of Likelihood ratios
Sources of good diagnostic test principles Standards for diagnostic test evaluation Bias in diagnostic testing
Useful systematic reviews of diagnostic tests Diagnosing acute sinusitis Hysteroscopy for endometrial disease Home pregnancy tests may not be very good Pre-school vision screening Which laboratory serology test for H pylori?
Good examples of diagnostic test development Ottawa knee rule Ottawa ankle rule Ottawa ankle rules revisited Clinical Assessment of Reliability of Examination (CARE) Diagnosing obstructive airway disease Diagnosing prosthetic joint infection Deciding how to discontinue cardiac resuscitation Diagnosing migraine (with likelihood ratios for clinical examination) Tuberculosis diagnosis Diagnosing anaemia
Management and testing Blunders and tests Calculating the risk of NSAID GI hospital admission Decision support for ordering blood tests in primary care Glucose self-monitoring and glycaemic control Improved diabetic control reduces healthcare costs Making the best use of laboratory tests Right treatment, right patient Reducing diagnostic tests in primary care Unnecessary laboratory tests have huge financial implications Variability of AF guidelines
General Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) Diagnostic testing emerging from the gloom? Making sense of testing How doctors use tests On being sane in insane places Doing the right test right Logistic regression explained Screening for prostate cancer Tests for smoking status Number needed to diagnose? False positive explosion Testing a screening test Testing a test
Tumour markers Cancer tests "holy grail" examined Tumour markers and cancer treatment Does ejaculation alter PSA levels? PSA test can obviate need for bone scan in prostate cancer Diagnosing melanoma Diagnosing gastric cancer Thyroid incidentalomas Barrett's oesophagitis and colon cancer Screening for prostate cancer DRE Screening for Prostate Cancer PSA test can obviate need for bone scan in prostate cancer Prostate cancer with low PSA
Clinical examination and prediction Neonatal hip instability and intrauterine factors Fragmment score (sic) for pressure ulcers Predicting early stroke survival Predicting falls in older people in the community Fibromyalgia: diagnosis and treatment Risk prediction from RCTs Diagnostic tool for erectile function When to measure bone density Prognostic index for mortality after hospital admission Predicting stroke outcome Predicting the risk of stroke with AF Diagnosing migraine (with likelihood ratios for clinical examination) Simple test to identify heavy drinkers Clinical scoring for alcohol abuse Dementia - diagnosis and treatment Diagnosing obstructive airway disease "Stops walking when talking" predicts a fall Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia: Diagnosis and Treatment Diagnosing anaemia Signs and symptoms predict thyroid disease
Imaging and radiography Skull X-ray for mild head injury? Too many X-rays - keep taking the guidelines Prostate volume predicts BPH outcome with finasteride Diagnosing acute sinusitis
Laboratory tests B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) for CHF RCT of BNP Troponin tests for cardiac damage Understanding pH Tuberculosis diagnosis Home pregnancy tests may not be very good Diagnosing anaemia Pathology as art appreciation: melanoma diagnosis Iron deficiency Diagnosing diabetes Which laboratory serology test for H pylori? Dipsticks for UTI Near patient testing HIV and AIDS HIV-1 virus: finding it and stopping it Uric acid crystals in synovial fluid for diagnosing gout
Screening reports from Bandolier Breast cancer screening: is it effective? Cholesterol screening DRE Screening for Prostate Cancer Drug Screening in the USA - 1994 Evidence-based screening Intracranial Aneurysms National Audit of the Neonatal (Guthrie) Screening Programme Occult blood tests for colorectal cancer Pre-school vision screening Risk and Down's screening Screening for allergy Screening for fragile X syndrome Screening for abdominal aortic aneurysm Screening for prostate cancer Testing a screening test
From the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality in the USA Note that these reports are too big to precis. If you click on the title you will link into the report Diagnosis and Treatment of Acute Bacterial Rhinosinusitis Diagnosis and Treatment of Uncomplicated Acute Sinusitis in Children Evaluation of Technologies for Identifying Acute Cardiac Ischemia in Emergency Departments Evaluation of Cervical Cytology Diagnosis and Management of Dental Caries Systematic Review of the Literature Regarding the Diagnosis of Sleep Apnea Management of Preterm Labor
Links The Heath Technology Assessment programme has produced a number of reports on diagnostic and screening methodologies. Bandolier has a review of one of them on near patient testing.

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