All tests ‘(…) do harm; some do good as well, and, of these, some do more good than harm at reasonable cost.’ - Muir Gray and Angela Raffle. Medical tests are widely and increasingly marketed directly to consumers via traditional and social media. Such tests may [...]
The anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) can be measured by a blood test and gives an indication of the number of oocytes in the ovaries, but not of oocyte quality . Whilst the test is helpful in assisted reproduction as it roughly indicates the potential number of [...]
Analytical performance specifications (APS) based on outcomes refer to how 'good' the analytical performance of a test needs to be to do more good than harm to the patient. Analytical performance of a measurand affects its clinical performance. Without first setting clinical performance requirements, it [...]
In recent years, social media have emerged as important spaces for commercial marketing of health tests, which can be used for the screening and diagnosis of otherwise generally healthy people. However, little is known about how health tests are promoted on social media, whether the [...]
Blood gas analysis is the most commonly ordered test in the intensive care unit. Each investigation, however, comes with risks and costs to the patient and healthcare system. Evidence suggests that many tests are performed with no appropriate clinical indication.
Analytical performance specifications (APS) are used for decisions about the required analytical quality of pathology tests to meet clinical needs. The Milan models, based on clinical outcome, biological variation, or state of the art, were developed to provide a framework for setting APS. An approach [...]
To our knowledge, this is the first methodological review of studies concerned with overdiagnosis in noncancer conditions. We identified 132 studies identifying or quantifying overdiagnosis of a wide range of noncancer conditions. We applied a novel framework that uses the concept of ‘‘Fair Umpires’’ to [...]
Guidelines for prostate specific antigen (PSA) testing in Australia recommend that men at average risk of prostate cancer who have been informed of the benefits and harms, and who decide to undergo regular testing, should be offered testing every 2 years from 50 to 69 years. This [...]
The objective of this study is to evaluate the strength of the evidence for, and the extent of, overdiagnosis in non-cancer conditions. We systematically searched for studies investigating overdiagnosis in non-cancer conditions. Using the 'Fair Umpire' framework to assess the evidence that cases diagnosed by [...]
The objectives of this study to are review evaluations of the diagnostic accuracy of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) rapid antigen tests (RATs) approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) for self-testing by ambulatory people in Australia; to compare these estimates with values reported by test [...]