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PubMed1977

[The informative value of diagnostic methods in chronic headache. A study of 112 cases (author's transl)].

A thorough neurological diagnostic investigation was carried out in 112 patients with chronic headache existing for an average of 14 years, using a case history questionnaire we had designed for the purpose. Apart from the history and clinical examination, the program included X-ray negatives, angiography, computer tomography, sequence scanning, electroencephalogram and echoencephalogram. Migraine was the most common diagnosis (54.5%). Three cases in which admission to a ward was necessary for more detailed examination are described and demonstrated with reference to neuroradiological illustrative material.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1981

[Nosocomial infections--a consequence of modern therapeutic and diagnostic methods (author's transl)].

Nosocomial infections are an increasingly observed complication of modern therapeutic and diagnostic procedures. They may arise exogenously, i.e. during nursing or medical care (contaminated instruments, catheters, inhalers, infusions) or endogenously by the patient's own bacterial flora. Characteristic of exogenous nosocomial infections are enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonas strains; they are of low virulence, are generally highly resistant to antibiotics and able to survive for long periods even in an unfavourable environment. Endogenous infections are most easily induced during operations on parts of the body that normally show a dense bacterial population such as the intestine; but they are also a dreaded complication of foreign body implants. Endogenous infections after non-sterile operations are most frequently due to enterobacteriaceae and bacteroides, especially Bacteroides fragilis. Endoprostheses are mainly infected by micro-organisms present on the skin, such as staphylococci, streptococci and corynebacterium. An important cause of nosocomial infections is a disturbance of the balance of the normal bacterial flora by uncritical and haphazard use of antibiotics.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1996

[Biliary ileus: pros and cons of the most current diagnostic methods].

The authors, on the basis of their recent experiences in treating biliary ileus, discuss diagnostic problems of serious side effects and talk about more recent diagnostic techniques. Above all ecography, CT, and Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiography are able to offer, in a lot of cases, a correct preoperative diagnosis. Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiography is a real progress even if it needs a more extensive use and, presents some doubts about its utility like all diagnostic techniques in biliary ileus.

Aged↗
PubMed1990

[Diagnosis of mammary gland diseases using microwave thermography: a study on adjunctive diagnostic methods in relation to different factors in breast diseases].

Since 1982, a 4.7 GHz microwave radiometer has been used for diagnosis of mammary gland diseases by obtaining temperature information on the region surrounding deeply located tumors. The subjects comprised 95 cases of malignant tumors and 331 cases of benign tumors (total, 426 cases). The analysis of the diagnostic results showed a 91.3% specificity, 72.6% sensitivity, 70.4% predictability, and 87.1% accuracy. The method provides different information on temperatures from conventional infrared telethermography and contact thermography due to the tissue permeability of microwave. Utilizing a combination of conventional methods and microwave thermography (MWT), the diagnostic rate was found to be 94.7%, resulting in an accuracy improvement of approximately 10%. Various factors are investigated for their effects on MWT diagnosis. No significant difference was seen with respect to histologic types. Although significant difference was seen with respect to histologic types. Although significant difference was not observed in relation to the diameter of the tumor, the diagnostic rate in T1 cases, which was 75.0% using two conventional methods, was improved to 100% when combined with MWT. Tumor depth revealed no significant difference. Tumor vascular density showed a high correlation with temperature measured by MWT.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Threshold of detection of Cryptosporidium oocysts in human stool specimens: evidence for low sensitivity of current diagnostic methods.

To determine the minimum number of Cryptosporidium oocysts that can be detected in stool specimens by diagnostic procedures, stool samples seeded with known numbers of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts were processed by the modified Formalin-ethyl acetate (FEA) stool concentration method. FEA concentrates were subsequently examined by both the modified cold Kinyoun acid-fast (AF) staining and fluorescein-tagged monoclonal antibody (immunofluorescence [IF]) techniques. Oocysts were more easily detected in watery diarrheal stool specimens than they were in formed stool specimens. For watery stool specimens, a 100% detection rate was accomplished at a concentration of 10,000 oocysts per g of stool by both the AF staining and IF techniques. In formed stool specimens, 100% of specimens seeded with 50,000 oocysts per gram of stool were detected by the IF technique, whereas 500,000 oocysts per g of stool were needed for a 100% detection rate by AF staining. Counting of all oocysts on IF slides indicated a mean oocyst loss ranging from 51.2 to 99.6%, depending on the stool consistency as determined by the FEA concentration procedure. Our findings suggest that the most commonly used coprodiagnostic techniques may fail to detect cryptosporidiosis in many immunocompromised and immunocompetent individuals.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

[A comparative analysis of diagnostic methods for Helicobacter pylori infection in children].

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the usefulness of five diagnostic tests for Helicobacter pylori (Hp) infection in children. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Sixty-five children with epigastric pain, recurrent abdominal pain, regurgitation, diarrhoea, anemia and insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus were investigated. Endoscopic biopsies from gastric antrum were performed and examined by the urease rapid test, histological examination and microbiological culture. An ELISA was used to detect specific IgG and anti-Hp. A carbon urea breath test was performed in 58 patients. RESULTS: Fifty-three patients were infected with Hp. The endoscopy appearance revealed nodularity in antral mucosa in 42 (79%) and erosions in 1 patient. The histology showed gastritis in all patients infected and Hp was identified in 46. The urease rapid test was positive in 96% and the culture positive in 89% of the patients infected. IgG antibodies to Hp were detected in 67% of the patients infected and the carbon urea breath test was positive in 96%. Twelve children were Hp negative, two of them having gastritis without Hp by histology. In the urease rapid test 3 false-positive results were detected and 1 false positive was found in the cultures. All Hp negative patients had negative results in the carbon urea breath test and were negative for IgG antibodies to Hp. CONCLUSIONS: The carbon urea breath test has a high sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of Hp infection and allows the selection of candidates for endoscopy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Improving the aggregate performance of psychiatric diagnostic methods when not all subjects receive the standard test.

Family studies of disease incidence often include some subjects who receive a diagnostic evaluation less accurate than that obtained with a standard method. This is particularly true of family studies of mental illness, where the standard is a consensus diagnosis based on both direct interview and corroborating family history from an informant in the family. Family members who are not interviewed have diagnoses based on history alone. Interviewed and uninterviewed relatives differ in several factors that influence the probability of disease, so that interview is not independent of disease. Thus, one cannot use the interview data to estimate the overall rate of illness. Family history-based illness rates may substantially underestimate true rates, so the observed rate in uninterviewed subjects is also a biased estimate. We discuss several models to reduce the bias in estimation of incidence rates. We propose explicit modelling and imputation as alternatives to the implicit assumptions that constitute the basis of the methods in current use. A clinical example involving 4806 relatives of probands with major affective illness illustrates the statistical issues.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Rapid diagnostic methods for influenza virus in clinical specimens: a comparative study.

A comparison of five rapid viral diagnostic techniques for identifying influenza virus in nasopharyngeal aspirates has been made on patients with influenza-like illnesses. Initial results with immune electron microscopy were positive in only one of 11 specimens from which virus was isolated and further work abandoned. Four other rapid tests were carried out on 39 specimens from which influenza virus had been isolated in tissue culture in 28. Of these 28 specimens yielding virus, 24 (85.7 percent) were positive by an indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) on nasopharyngeal cells; 18 (64.3 percent) by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), 19 (67.8 percent) by enzyme-linked fluorescent assay (ELFA), and 26 (92.8 percent) by a rapid tissue culture amplification method (TCA) in a continuous Rhesus monkey kidney line (LLC-MK2) with identification of virus by fluorescent antibody. In terms of sensitivity, simplicity, and rapidity, a combination of the IFAT and TCA methods seems to be very useful.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Touch cytology, a useful diagnostic method for diagnosis of upper gastrointestinal tract infections.

Candida albicans, Campylobacter pylori, and Giardia lamblia are microorganisms that are frequently found in the upper gastrointestinal tract. A cytological smear of biopsies obtained at endoscopy was compared with the pathologic examination of biopsies. Candida albicans was found in 55 patients, Campylobacter pylori in 54, Giardia lamblia in 31; cytology was positive in 43, 46, and 22 cases, respectively, and biopsy in 29, 43, and 22 cases. Cytology was thus the only positive test in 26 cases with Candida albicans (47% of the 55 cases), in 11 cases of Campylobacter pylori (20%), and in nine cases of Giardia lamblia (29%). We believe that the cytological smear of biopsies (touch cytology) is a quick and sensitive method for diagnosing infections of the upper gastrointestinal tract, increasing the diagnostic yield obtained by biopsy alone.

Campylobacter Infections↗
PubMed1984

An analysis of the diagnostic methods for acute pulmonary embolism.

In spite of numerous sophisticated investigative procedures, acute pulmonary embolism (PE) is very frequently misdiagnosed. In order to improve the diagnostic approach to PE, the sensitivity and specificity of the commonly used methods were reviewed in a group of 421 patients with angiographically proved PE without associated cardio-pulmonary disease. The specificity of diagnostic procedures was, by decreasing order: positive pulmonary angiography (to affirm) = negative perfusion lung scan (to eliminate) greater than chest X-ray much greater than clinical symptoms, positive perfusion lung scan, ECG, blood gas, serum enzymes.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1994

[The effect of preoperative diagnostic methods on the correct selection of operative procedure on the thyroid gland].

The study compares three diagnostic procedures, the analysis of which is aimed at a choosing the optimal extent of resection on the thyroid. Diagnostic procedures, when based on clinical examination (palpation, scintigraphy, laryngoscopy, X-ray), lead to the optimal extent of resection in 74.2% of patients. Procedures selection performed on the basis of fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) results lead to the correct extent of resection in 93.1% of patients. The procedures of frozen section lead to the correct resection extent in 81.3% of patients. (Tab. 1, Fig. 1, Ref. 25.)

Adult↗
PubMed2004

[Additional diagnostic methods for recording of adenoid hypertrophy in children with allergic rhinitis].

The role of enlarged adenoids and tonsils in upper airway obstruction has become well-established earlier, thus, adenoidectomy with or without tonsillectomy is one of the most commonly performed surgical procedures in the paediatric population. Direct assessment of adenoidal size is difficult and no definitive method is so far available to complement clinical assessment. The most important diagnostic techniques are recording of obstructive symptoms, transoral posterior rhinoscopic examination, radiological evaluation, such as lateral radiography of the adenoid and nasopharyngeal magnetic resonance imaging, transnasal fiberoscopic examination, acoustic rhinometry and others. In this study we compare acoustic rhinometry, fiberoscopy and Cohen and Konac radiological method. Spearman's correlation test was used to evaluate the degree of correlation between these three methods. We concluded that acoustic rhinometry and radiology are good and objective methods for measuring adenoid sizes in allergic children.

Adenoids↗
PubMed2002

Diagnostic methods current best practices and guidelines for histologic evaluation in infective endocarditis.

Infective endocarditis (IE) often presents diagnostic and therapeutic challenges and continues to cause high morbidity and mortality. Confirmation of the diagnosis of IE is important for the purposes of epidemiologic and clinical studies and is crucial for patient management. Despite recent advances in diagnostic techniques, about 10% of IE cases remain culture-negative. Because pathological examination of cardiac valves to demonstrate vegetations and valvular inflammation remains the gold standard for the diagnosis of IE, the role of the pathologist is often decisive, especially when bacteriologists fail to isolate a microorganism or when a microorganism that has been isolated may be a contaminant. Furthermore, the pathologist may play an important role in identification of previously unknown infectious agents.

Aged↗
PubMed1981

Vasa previa. Case report, review and presentation of a new diagnostic method.

The antepartum diagnosis of vasa previa has always been exceedingly difficult. A case report demonstrates the diagnostic value of hemoglobin electrophoresis on vaginal blood, a novel application of routine laboratory technique. Antepartum fetal monitoring (nonstress test [NST] and contraction stress test [CST]) in the presence of significant fetal anemia is of limited diagnostic value. The need for prompt neonatal care to salvage the compromised fetus is stressed.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

[Diagnostic methods of gallstones--plain radiogram and contrast examination of biliary system].

There is a wide spectrum of diagnostic imaging modalities to evaluate the biliary system, such as plain radiogram, echogram (US), oral cholecystogram (OCG), intravenous cholangiogram (DIC), CT, MRI, and RI scintigram. Since the late 1970's US, non-invasive and easily available, is the first choice of examination when gallstones are suspected because of achievement of detailed resolution. OCG or DIC is rarely performed for gallstones. However, it was not until the advent of various measures of treatment for gallstones, other than cholecystectomy, such as dissolution therapy or extracorporal shock wave lithotripsy of gallstones, that contrast examination of the biliary system has been re-utilized to evaluate the characteristics, number and size of gallstones, and patency of cystic duct, which are important data. The indications and significance of plain and contrast examinations for gallstone disease is discussed.

Adult↗