OBJETIVO: Avaliar a relação entre mensurações de gordura (subcutânea e periprostática) realizadas em ressonância magnética, com o prognóstico do paciente portador de câncer de próstata. MATERIAIS E MÉTODOS: A mensuração da gordura periprostática e subcutânea com exame de ressonância magnética com ênfase na próstata foram realizadas em 58 pacientes com o diagnóstico histopatológico de câncer de próstata. Dados demográficos, clínicos e patológicos dos pacientes foram coletados e a correlação com o prognóstico, realizada. RESULTADOS: Na análise univariada, as gorduras periprostática e a subcutânea indicaram serem preditores de evolução desfavorável com significância estatística para o observador 1, no caso da gordura periprostática e para o observador 2 no caso da gordura subcutânea. Na análise multivariada, não houve associação com significância estatística. CONCLUSÃO: A associação entre obesidade e o câncer de próstata é complexa. Os dados obtidos neste estudo indicam que a medida da gordura periprostática, pelas imagens em T2, na RM, podem ser um preditor independente, da evolução desfavorável de pacientes com neoplasia de próstata / PURPOSE: Evaluate the relationship between fat measurements (subcutaneous and periprostatic) performed on MRI, with the prognosis of the patient with prostate cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Measurements of periprostatic and subcutaneous fat with magnetic resonance imaging with emphasis on the prostate were performed in 58 patients with the histopathological diagnosis of prostate cancer. Demographic, clinical and pathological data of the patients were collected and the correlation with the prognosis was performed. RESULTS: In the univariate analysis, the periprostatic and subcutaneous fat were predictors of unfavorable evolution with statistical significance for the observer 1, in the case of the periprostatic fat and for the observer 2 in the case of the subcutaneous fat. In the multivariate analysis, there was no association with statistical significance. CONCLUSION: The association between obesity and prostate cancer is complex. The data obtained in this study indicate that the measurement of periprostatic fat by T2-weighted images in MRI may be an independent predictor of the unfavorable evolution of patients with prostate neoplasia

Background Pain and dysfunction in the temporomandibular region (Temporomandibular Disorders, TMD) are common conditions in the general population with an estimated treatment need of 5-15% in the general population. However, in Sweden, traceable performed treatments are significantly lower. The reasons for this indicated under-treatment are not known. To easily detect patients with a potential TMD related condition, three screening questions, 3Q/TMD, have been introduced. The aim with this project was to evaluate the validity and outcome of the 3Q/TMD with the objective to recognize individuals with TMD and potential treatment need in the Public Dental Health service (PDHS). Methods The thesis is based on four study samples; three from the PDHS in the county of Västerbotten, Sweden and one sample from the specialized orofacial pain clinic at the Academic Centre for Dentistry, ACTA, Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The bases for all studies are individuals’ answers to the 3Q/TMD and quantitative approaches were used in the analyses. The prevalence of affirmative answers was evaluated in a large cross-sectional study over the lifespan. The validity of the 3Q/TMD in relation to the Diagnostic Criteria for TMD (DC/TMD) as reference standard was established in two case-control studies. The outcome of the 3Q/TMD on TMD treatment within general practice was evaluated in a cohort study. Results Affirmative answers to the 3Q/TMD increased during adolescence. Women answered affirmatively to the 3Q/TMD significantly more often compared to men for all age groups expect for the first and last parts of a one hundred-year lifespan. The highest prevalence was reported by women during their fertile period in life. In a general population sample, 74% of individuals with an affirmative answer qualified for a DC/TMD pain or dysfunctional diagnosis, as compared to 64% in a specialist patient sample. In the general population sample, for the individual 3Q/TMD questions, as well as combinations of questions, the negative predictive values were high (0.92-0.99). For the specialist sample, when at least one question was answered affirmatively the negative predictive value was high (0.90). The positive predictive value was high (0.89) when all three questions were positive. There was significantly more treatment performed or recommended for 3Q-positives (21.5%) compared to 3Q-negatives (2.2%) (P<0.001). The odds ratio for TMD-related treatment for 3Q-positives versus 3Q-negatives was 12.1 (95% CI: 6.3-23.4). Conclusion The 3Q/TMD is a convenient and valid tool to recognize individuals who would benefit from a further TMD examination within an adult, general population. Within specialized orofacial pain clinics, the questions are useful as guidance for further diagnostics. Although the 3Q/TMD was a factor related to TMD treatment, the majority of individuals with self-reported symptoms of TMD still did not receive traceable assessment or treatment. Factors associated with dentists’ clinical decision-making in relation to TMD warrants further research. The utilization of the 3Q/TMD as a part of a decision tree for the clinician can improve the health care for patients with TMD and is therefore recommended within dentistry. / Bakgrund Smärta och funktionsstörningar i käksystemet (TMD) är vanligt förekommande och de flesta av dessa patienter kan behandlas framgångsrikt i tandvården. Tidigare studier har visat att det kan finnas en skillnad mellan det skattade vårdbehovet och utförd behandling för patienter med TMD i tandvården. Anledningen till detta är inte känt och har identifierats som en kunskapslucka av Socialstyrelsen. Den vanligaste orsaken till akut smärta i ansiktsregion är tandvärk medan kronisk smärta oftast är relaterat till smärttillstånd i muskulatur och käkled (TMD). Att leva med smärta har en negativ påverkan på livskvaliteten oavsett om smärtan är orsakad av tandvärk eller TMD. Kvinnor uppger symtom på TMD ungefär två gånger så ofta som män och förekomsten är som högst bland kvinnor i arbetsför ålder. Smärtan är ofta relaterad till stress och långvarig smärta ökar risken för såväl spridning till andra lokalisationer som till sömnbesvär och nedstämdhet. Tidig intervention har visat sig betydelsefull för att minska risken för negativa konsekvenser relaterat till kroniska besvär. Sammantaget visar detta på vikten av ett system inom tandvården för att tidigt identifiera patienter som är i möjligt behov av fördjupad utredning och eventuellt behandling. Därför har tre screeningfrågor för TMD, 3Q/TMD införts inom tandvården. I Folktandvården i Västerbotten infördes frågorna i maj 2010 som en obligatorisk del av den digitala hälsodeklarationen för samtliga patienter. Syfte Syftet med avhandlingen har varit att synliggöra patienter med smärta och käkfunktionsstörning i befolkningen och att därmed förbättra omhändertagandet av patienter med TMD inom Folktandvården. De specifika målen var att: i) beskriva förekomst av frekvent smärta och dysfunktion i ansikte, käke och käkled för män och kvinnor för olika åldersgrupper baserat på tre screeningfrågor ii) bedöma de tre screeningfrågornas validitet i förhållande till en diagnos enligt Diagnostic Criteria for TMD, DC/TMD i två olika populationer iii) utvärdera utfallet av 3Q/TMD på klinisk beslutsprocess inom Folktandvården i Västerbotten, Sverige. Studiepopulation och metod Avhandlingen baserades på fyra olika urval av patientpopulationer, tre från Folktandvården i Västerbotten, Sverige och en från Specialistkliniken från Academish Centrum Tandheelkunde Amsterdam, ACTA, Amsterdam, Nederländerna. Underlaget för samtliga studier var baserade på individuella svar på de tre screeningfrågorna. Förekomsten av de som svarat ja på någon av frågorna utvärderades i en tvärsnittsstudie bland nästan 140 000 individer och över ett helt livsspann. Validiteten för 3Q/TMD i relation till en diagnos enligt DC/TMD utvärderades i två fall-kontroll studier. Först undersöktes en studiepopulation från Folktandvården i Västerbotten, Sverige för att representera allmän befolkningen. Därefter utvärderades screeningfrågorna bland de patienter som remitterats till en specialistklinik i Amsterdam, Nederländerna på grund av TMD relaterade besvär. Dessa representerar remitterade patienter. Utfallet av 3Q/TMD på TMD behandling i Folktandvården utvärderades i en prospektiv kohort studie. Resultat Förekomsten av de som svarat ja på någon av frågorna ökar under tonåren. Kvinnor svarar ja på någon av frågorna signifikant oftare än män i alla åldrar, utom i början och slutet av livsspannet. Den högsta prevalensen noterades för kvinnor i fertil ålder. I allmänbefolkningen kvalificerar 74% av de som svarat ja på någon av frågorna även för en DC/TMD diagnos. Motsvarande siffra för urvalet från specialistkliniken var 64%. I urvalet från allmänbefolkningen var det negativa prediktiva värdet högt för såväl alla enskilda frågor som för kombinationer av frågor (0.92-0.99). Bland de remitterade patienterna, var negativt prediktivt värde högt när individen svarade ja på minst en fråga (0.90). Positivt prediktivt värde var högt när individen svarat ja på alla tre frågorna (0.89). Behandling hade utförts eller rekommenderats signifikant oftare till de som svarat ja på någon av frågorna (21.5%) jämfört med de som svarat nej på alla tre frågor (2.2%) (P<0.001). Odds ratio för TMD behandling för 3Q-positiva jämfört med 3Q-negativa var 12.1 (95% CI:6.3-23.4). Slutsats Sammanfattningsvis visar resultaten att en betydande andel av befolkningen, framför allt kvinnor i arbetsför ålder, har smärta och/eller funktionsstörningar i käksystemet. Frågorna är lämpliga för att screena patienter i behov av en fördjupad utredning. De som svarat nej kommer med stor sannolikhet inte att kvalificera för en diagnos enligt DC/TMD. Bland remitterade patienter kommer majoriteten att svara ja på någon av frågorna. I allmäntandvården får två tredjedelar av det som svarat ja på minst en fråga, inte ett synliggjort omhändertagande baserat på vad som är angivet i deras tandvårdsjournal. Detta kan tyda på brister bland allmäntandläkare och tandhygienister i kliniskt beslutsfattande för patienter med TMD.

A constante evolução da tecnologia em saúde permite diagnósticos clínicos cada vez mais rápidos e precisos, porém eles não são isentos de danos. Conhecer e calcular a capacidade preditiva de classificadores de risco é um passo fundamental no desenvolvimento de políticas de saúde e na criação de protocolos clínicos. O processo de avaliação de um teste diagnóstico normalmente tem início com o preenchimento da tabela de contingência. Testes diagnósticos com elevado número de falso positivos geram ansiedade, exames adicionais e tratamentos desnecessários. Testes diagnósticos com elevado número de falso negativos podem contribuir para demoras desnecessárias no tratamento de uma possível doença, podendo dificultar sua cura. A partir da experiência adquirida com a análise da capacidade preditiva do partograma da OMS, esta tese apresenta o desenvolvimento de um novo indicador de capacidade preditiva e diagnóstica de testes. Justifica-se este novo desenvolvimento pela necessidade de simplificar, integralizar e exibir de forma conjunta os principais parâmetros necessários à avaliação da capacidade preditiva e diagnóstica de testes. A avalição dos partogramas de 9.995 mulheres da Nigéria e Uganda mostrou que a linha de alerta deste instrumento possui uma baixa capacidade diagnóstica como preditor para desfechos adversos graves no trabalho de parto. A partir desses e outros resultados, em fevereiro de 2018 a OMS recomendou mudanças no partograma. Com isso, foi explorado o uso do gráfico-radar como uma ferramenta para facilitar a comunicação dos parâmetros já existentes utilizados na avaliação da capacidade diagnóstica dos testes. Sete documentos com diretrizes em saúde materna publicados pela OMS entre os anos de 2016 a 2018 foram utilizados nesse processo. Utilizando o cálculo da área inscrita do gráfico-radar apresenta-se também um novo indicador integrativo para avaliação da capacidade preditiva de testes diagnósticos, o Índice de Máxima Acurácia (IMA) / The constant evolution of health technology allows for faster and more accurate clinical diagnoses, but they are not harmless. Knowing and calculating the predictive capacity of risk classifiers is a fundamental step in the development of health policies and in the creation of clinical protocols. The process of evaluating a diagnostic test usually begins with the completion of the contingency table. Diagnostic tests with high false positives generate avoidable distress, additional tests and unnecessary treatments. Diagnostic tests with high false negatives may contribute to unnecessary delays in the treatment of a possible disease. Based on the experience gained with the analysis of predictive capacity of the WHO partograph, this thesis presents the development of a new indicator of predictive and diagnostic capacity of tests. This new development is justified by the need to simplify, integrate and display together the main parameters necessary for the evaluation of the predictive and diagnostic capacity of tests. The assessment of the partographs of 9,995 women from Nigeria and Uganda showed that the alert line of this instrument has a low diagnostic capacity as a predictor for serious adverse outcomes in labor. From these and other results, in February 2018 the WHO recommended changes in the partograph. The use of the radar chart was explored as a tool to facilitate the communication of the existing parameters used in the evaluation of the diagnostic capacity of the tests. Seven documents with guidelines on maternal health published by WHO between 2016 and 2018 were used in this process. Using the calculated area of the radar chart, a new integrative indicator for the predictive capacity of diagnostic tests, the Index of Maximum Accuracy (IMA), is also presented

Significant research efforts have focused on examining the effect of patient factors on providing diagnoses across clinical settings; however, the influence of clinician demographics have received less attention. This study aimed to understand the impact of nonclinical factors such as clinician characteristics and response time on diagnostic accuracy. The study used data from a WHO field study of the ICD-11 development (n = 1822) that required clinicians to diagnose two case vignettes. Clinicians’ slower response times had a significant positive impact on their rates of diagnostic accuracy. However, there was no evidence that clinicians’ demographic features were directly related to their diagnostic accuracy. Rather, clinicians’ age, years of experience, world region, and their clinical profession indirectly predicted accuracy through their overall response time. Contradictory to decision-making theories, older clinicians and clinicians with more years of experience had higher rates of diagnostic accuracy when they spent more time completing the study. Additionally, clinicians in South America with slower response times had higher accuracy compared to clinicians in North America. Clinicians in Asia had faster response times that negatively impacted their accuracy rates compared to North America clinicians. These findings suggest differences in response time and the applicability of the ICD-11 across cultures. Consistent with previous research, medical professionals with quicker response times had the lowest rates of accuracy compared to psychologists and other clinical professionals. These findings highlight the need for researchers and clinicians to consider the role their dispositional features have in the diagnostic process. Moreover, it is crucial that future research into diagnostic decision-making and accuracy should consider additional mediating factors such as response style, culture, and experience.

I assessed the accuracy of two clinical prediction rules, the d-dimer blood test and point of care ultrasound for diagnosing lower limb deep vein thrombosis. Emergency physicians were trained in ultrasound and prospectively scanned emergency department patients with suspected deep vein thrombosis. Accuracy of the Wells and AMUSE rules and the ultrasound result was compared to radiology-performed ultrasound and a 90-day clinical outcome. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed assessing which factors were associated with the outcome. The sensitivity and specificity of the Wells score for the clinical outcome was 85.7% and 68.5%; the AMUSE score 85.7% and 54.4%. Ultrasound had a sensitivity of 91.7% and specificity of 91.7% for radiology-diagnosed thrombus and 78.6% and 95.0% for clinical outcome. The odds ratio of a positive outcome with a positive ultrasound was 65.1. After receiving the ultrasound training program, emergency physicians were unable to demonstrate sufficient accuracy to replace current diagnostic strategies.

Study Design: A blinded, prospective diagnostic test study was conducted.<p>Objectives: To assess the inter-tester reliability of clinical examination items for carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), to assess the validity of individual clinical test items and self-report measures for the diagnosis of CTS and to assess the accuracy of an optimum test item cluster for the diagnosis of CTS.<p>Study Rational: Examination of the diagnostic validity of various clinical tests for the diagnosis of CTS has shown mixed results and the reliability of many of these tests has not been determined. The majority of the diagnostic validity research for CTS has examined tests individually which is in contrast to clinical practice where the results of multiple tests are combined as part of the clinical reasoning process in order to formulate a differential diagnosis: the test item cluster, derived through logistic regression, is proposed as a means to integrate the validity of multiple tests. Methods: 37 subjects (74 hands) were recruited from a convenience sample of consecutive patients referred to for electrodiagnostic (EDX) testing due to upper extremity symptomatic complaints. Subjects underwent EDX testing followed by completion of self-report questionnaires and a standardized clinical examination by examiners blinded to EDX results. Diagnostic validity was determined for both general and restricted CTS classification groupings. <p>Results: Out of 18 clinical test items, 12 had reliability coefficients (i.e. ICC or Kappa) of .40 or greater. There were 10 clinical exam and self-report items that were found to have likelihood point estimates above 2 or below 0.50 for the general diagnostic classification and 6 items had acceptable validity for the restricted classification. The test item cluster (TIC) derived for the general classification included hand numbness and symptom reproduction with the upper limb neurodynamic test 1. The TIC derived for the restricted classification included hand numbness and the overall score of the symptom component of the Bringham Carpal Tunnel Questionnaire. The 95% confidence intervals for most likelihood ratio point estimates were wide. <p>Conclusions: The TICs for both classification groupings did not yield improved diagnostic validity beyond that found with the single best test item (hand numbness). The value of the single best test item hand numbness was in a negative response. Further investigation is required to validate the TIC and the single best test item and to improve the point estimate precision.

BACKGROUND: MRI is increasingly being used for rectal cancer staging. The purpose of this study was to summarize published evidence to determine the accuracy of MRI for T-category, lymph node (LN) metastases, and circumferential resection margin (CRM) involvement in rectal cancer. METHODS: Sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic odds ratios (DOR) were estimated using hierarchical summary receiver operating characteristics modeling and bivariate random effects modeling. RESULTS: MRI was more specific for CRM (94%, 95%CI 88-97) than for T-category (75%, 95%CI 68-80) and LN’s (71%, 95%CI 59-81) but was more sensitive for T-category (87%, 95%CI 81-92) than for CRM (77%, 95%CI 57-90) and LN’s (77%, 95%CI 69-84). DOR was higher for CRM (56.1, 95%CI 15.3-205.8) than for LN’s (8.3, 95%CI 4.6-14.7) and T-category (20.4, 95%CI 11.1-37.3). CONCLUSIONS: MRI has good accuracy for both CRM and T-category and should be considered for preoperative rectal cancer staging. In contrast, LN assessment is poor on MRI.

BACKGROUND: MRI is increasingly being used for rectal cancer staging. The purpose of this study was to summarize published evidence to determine the accuracy of MRI for T-category, lymph node (LN) metastases, and circumferential resection margin (CRM) involvement in rectal cancer. METHODS: Sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic odds ratios (DOR) were estimated using hierarchical summary receiver operating characteristics modeling and bivariate random effects modeling. RESULTS: MRI was more specific for CRM (94%, 95%CI 88-97) than for T-category (75%, 95%CI 68-80) and LN’s (71%, 95%CI 59-81) but was more sensitive for T-category (87%, 95%CI 81-92) than for CRM (77%, 95%CI 57-90) and LN’s (77%, 95%CI 69-84). DOR was higher for CRM (56.1, 95%CI 15.3-205.8) than for LN’s (8.3, 95%CI 4.6-14.7) and T-category (20.4, 95%CI 11.1-37.3). CONCLUSIONS: MRI has good accuracy for both CRM and T-category and should be considered for preoperative rectal cancer staging. In contrast, LN assessment is poor on MRI.

The modern medical diagnostic systems are based on the techniques using digital data formats – a natural feed for the computer based systems. With the use of modern diagnostic techniques the diagnosis process is becoming more complex as many diseases seem to have the same pre-symptoms at early stages. And of course computer based systems require more efficient and effective ways to identify such complexities. However, the existing formalisms for knowledge representation, tools and technologies, learning and reasoning strategies seem inadequate to create meaningful relationship among the entities of medical data i.e. diseases, symptoms and medicine etc. This inadequacy actually is due to the poor design of the knowledge base of the medical system and leads the medical systems towards inaccurate diagnosis. This thesis discusses the limitations and issues specific to the design factors of the knowledge base and suggests that instead of using the deficient approaches and tools for representing, learning and retrieving the accurate knowledge, use of semantic web tools and techniques should be adopted. Design by contract approach may be suitable for establishing the relationships between the diseases and symptoms. The relationship between diseases and symptoms and their invariants can be represented more meaningfully using semantic web. This can lead to more concrete diagnosis, by overcoming the deficiencies and limitations of traditional approaches and tools.

Study Design: A blinded, prospective diagnostic test study was conducted.<p>Objectives: To assess the inter-tester reliability of clinical examination items for carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), to assess the validity of individual clinical test items and self-report measures for the diagnosis of CTS and to assess the accuracy of an optimum test item cluster for the diagnosis of CTS.<p>Study Rational: Examination of the diagnostic validity of various clinical tests for the diagnosis of CTS has shown mixed results and the reliability of many of these tests has not been determined. The majority of the diagnostic validity research for CTS has examined tests individually which is in contrast to clinical practice where the results of multiple tests are combined as part of the clinical reasoning process in order to formulate a differential diagnosis: the test item cluster, derived through logistic regression, is proposed as a means to integrate the validity of multiple tests. Methods: 37 subjects (74 hands) were recruited from a convenience sample of consecutive patients referred to for electrodiagnostic (EDX) testing due to upper extremity symptomatic complaints. Subjects underwent EDX testing followed by completion of self-report questionnaires and a standardized clinical examination by examiners blinded to EDX results. Diagnostic validity was determined for both general and restricted CTS classification groupings. <p>Results: Out of 18 clinical test items, 12 had reliability coefficients (i.e. ICC or Kappa) of .40 or greater. There were 10 clinical exam and self-report items that were found to have likelihood point estimates above 2 or below 0.50 for the general diagnostic classification and 6 items had acceptable validity for the restricted classification. The test item cluster (TIC) derived for the general classification included hand numbness and symptom reproduction with the upper limb neurodynamic test 1. The TIC derived for the restricted classification included hand numbness and the overall score of the symptom component of the Bringham Carpal Tunnel Questionnaire. The 95% confidence intervals for most likelihood ratio point estimates were wide. <p>Conclusions: The TICs for both classification groupings did not yield improved diagnostic validity beyond that found with the single best test item (hand numbness). The value of the single best test item hand numbness was in a negative response. Further investigation is required to validate the TIC and the single best test item and to improve the point estimate precision.