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Setting the target for a better cervical screening test: characteristics of a cost-effective test for cervical neoplasia screening.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the potential effects on costs and outcomes of changes in sensitivity and specificity with new screening methods for cervical cancer. METHODS: Using a Markov model of the natural history of cervical cancer, we estimated the effects of sensitivity, specificity, and screening frequency on cost-effectiveness. Our estimates of conventional Papanicolaou test sensitivity of 51% and specificity of 97% were obtained from a meta-analysis. We estimated the effect of reducing false-negative rates from 40-90% and increasing false-positive rates by up to 20%, independently and jointly. We varied the marginal cost of improving sensitivity from $0 to $15. RESULTS: When specificity was held constant, increasing sensitivity of the Papanicolaou test increased life expectancy and costs. When sensitivity was held constant, decreasing specificity of the Papanicolaou test increased costs, an effect that was more dramatic at more frequent intervals. Decreased specificity had a substantial effect on cost-effectiveness estimates of improved Papanicolaou test sensitivity. Most of those effects are related to the cost of evaluation and treatment of low-grade lesions. CONCLUSION: Policies or technologies that increased sensitivity of cervical cytologic screening increased overall costs, even if the cost of the technology was identical to that of conventional Papanicolaou smears. These effects appear to be caused by relatively high prevalence of low-grade lesions and are magnified at frequent screening intervals. Efficient cervical cancer screening requires methods with greater ability to detect lesions that are most likely to become cancerous.

Adolescent↗

Knowledge, beliefs, and prior screening behavior among blacks and whites reporting for prostate cancer screening.

OBJECTIVES: A survey to determine prostate cancer-related knowledge, beliefs, and prior screening behavior was administered to men participating in prostate cancer screening events at nine major sites in the southeast. Since prostate cancer disproportionately affects blacks, a primary focus of the analysis was to determine if differences in responses exist between racial groups. METHODS: A 20-question, multiple-choice survey to ascertain prostate cancer knowledge and beliefs, demographics, and health care access information was administered at nine major southeastern sites participating in Prostate Cancer Awareness screening events. Potential differences between the responses of blacks and whites were tested using the Cochran-Mantel-Haenszel test (P < 0.05), adjusting for differences among sites. RESULTS: Major findings of this study on 286 black and 1218 white men are as follows: (1) only 28% of black or white men report that their doctor ever discussed a test for prostate cancer with them; (2) blacks were less likely to have a regular doctor (P = 0.03) or ever to have had a digital rectal examination (P < 0.001) or prostate-specific antigen testing (P = 0.005); (3) blacks were less likely to report knowing someone with prostate cancer (P < 0.001) and were more apt to report their acquaintances experiencing post-treatment impotence than whites (P = 0.03); they were less likely to report that "a man with prostate cancer can lead a normal life" (P < 0.001) or that "men can have prostate cancer without symptoms" (P < 0.001); (4) a substantial number of all men did not know that race and/or heredity are risk factors; and (5) "peace of mind" was the leading reason why men (63% of whites and 50% of blacks) attended prostate cancer screening events. CONCLUSIONS: There are a number of similarities among black and white men regarding knowledge and beliefs related to prostate cancer. Important differences, however, in access to screening, perception of the disease and its treatment, and knowledge of risk factors exist between racial groups and represent significant barriers to early detection among African Americans.

Black or African American↗

Screening rarely screened women: time-to-service and 24-month outcomes of tailored interventions.

BACKGROUND: Managed care organizations and others reaching out to underscreened women seek strategies to encourage mammogram and Pap screening. METHODS: Female HMO members aged 50-69 years and overdue for a mammogram and a Pap test (n = 501) were followed for 24 months after interventions began. An Outreach intervention (tailored letters and motivational telephone interviews), an Inreach intervention (motivational interview delivered in clinics), and a Combined Inreach/Outreach intervention were compared to Usual Care at 24 months. Logistic regression and Cox hazard models examined predictors of obtaining screening services and time-to-service, respectively. RESULTS: Compared with Usual Care, the odds of Outreach women aged 50-64 obtaining a mammogram (OR = 2.06; 95% CI = 1.59-5.29), a Pap test (OR = 1.97; 95% CI = 1.12-3.53), or both (OR = 2.53; 95% CI = 1.40-4.63) remained significantly increased at 24 months. The average time-to-service for Outreach women was reduced by 4 months. Outreach effects persisted despite intensive, ongoing health plan efforts to improve screening of all women. CONCLUSIONS: This brief, tailored outreach intervention was an effective strategy for encouraging cervical and breast cancer screening among women overdue for both screening services. It also shortened time-to-service, an important benefit for early detection and treatment. Alternative strategies are needed for women who remain unscreened.

Aged↗

To screen or not to screen for gestational diabetes mellitus. The clinical quagmire.

Although there continues to be a lack of agreement about the most appropriate way to screen for GDM, screening remains the standard of care in this country. Universal screening of all pregnant women maximizes sensitivity but has significant financial implications because of its increased costs. Additional studies are needed that apply cost-analysis to various screening protocols to identify cost-effective screening strategies.

Diabetes, Gestational↗

The 'hows', 'whos', and 'whens' of screening: gynaecologists' perspectives on cervical cancer screening in urban Sweden.

Population-based screening has contributed to decreased mortality in cervical cancer. However, the 'hows', 'whos' and 'whens' of screening still concern health professionals and policy makers. As part of a research project aimed at examining a population-based cervical cancer screening program (PCCSP) from different stakeholders' perspectives, the aim of this qualitative interview study was to elucidate the views of gynaecologists, working in both public and private settings, as stakeholders in the PCCSP in the county of Stockholm, Sweden. Results from semi structured interviews with 17 physicians indicate ambiguity in their descriptions of the purpose of both the PCCSP and smear testing in general, leading to different views about appropriate time intervals for Pap-smear testing. The gynaecologists also described experiencing a number of dilemmas related to information content and provision-both prior to screening and in relation to test results. In addition, the gynaecologists tended to differentiate morally through choice of language between women who participate in some form of screening and non-attendees of the PCCSP. There also appeared to be distinctions in how these gynaecologists conceptualised and discussed women receiving Pap-smears, dependent on whether they were regarded as within the category of 'my patients' (seen by the gynaecologist in a private or public setting) or 'the population' (women unknown to the gynaecologist). This study indicates the importance of comprehensively analysing the context of professionals' work when attempting to understand professional attitudes. Seeming disparities in attitudes as well as varying practices may be explained by the simultaneous existence of multiple value systems, applied to different patient populations, as found in this study.

Adult↗

Rationale for randomised trials of prostate cancer screening. The International Prostate Screening Trial Evaluation Group.

Screening for prostate cancer has been advocated by a number of organisations largely because there is good evidence that administration of the test for prostate specific antigen (PSA) results in the detection of cancers at an early stage. However, the mere fact that a cancer can be detected earlier in its natural history by screening is no guarantee that benefit will follow. Further, screening for prostate cancer can substantially impair the quality of life of those with detected and treated cancer, that would not otherwise have reduced life expectancy. The only established mechanism to evaluate the efficacy of screening is the randomised controlled trial. In this paper we review the trials contributing to our collaboration, the advantages that will flow from them, and the reasons why decisions on the introduction of population-based screening for prostate cancer cannot be made before these trials have come to fruition.

Aged↗

A short screen for depression: the AB Clinician Depression Screen (ABCDS).

BACKGROUND: Depression is common in elderly people but physicians may not screen for it because of the length of time required by current screening instruments. We have developed a short screening instrument for depression for use in elderly people with normal cognition, mild cognitive impairment or early dementia. METHODS: Participants were aged 55 years or more, had scored 20 or more on the standardized Mini-mental State Examination (SMMSE) and had been referred to a specialist geriatric outpatient memory clinic. Scores on the 30-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) were analyzed. A composite GDS score, consisting of the top five individual question scores that correlated to depression (GDS >or= 14), were analyzed using a receiver operating curve analysis. RESULTS: There were 810 patients with SMMSE scores of 20 or greater, of whom 202 (24.9%) scored 14 or more on the GDS, indicating depression. GDS question 16, "Do you often feel downhearted and blue?," had the highest correlation with the overall scores of 14 or more on the 30-point instrument (r = 0.64, p < 0.001). The next four questions with the highest correlates were Q10, "Do you often feel helpless?" (r = 0.56, p < 0.001), Q3, "Do you feel that your life is empty?" (r = 0.54, p < 0.001), Q9, "Do you feel happy most of the time?" (r = 0.52, p < 0.001), and Q1, "Are you basically satisfied with your life?" (r = 0.50, p < 0.001). The negative predictive value of "Do you often feel downhearted and blue?" answered negatively for depression was 96%. These five questions were used as a short screening instrument. The positive predictive value of four or five positive responses was 97%. These data were not significantly different whether the patient's SMMSE score was 20-25 or 26-30. CONCLUSIONS: The AB Clinician Depression Screen (ABCDS), comprising five questions, can rapidly identify patients with depression or eliminate that diagnosis. In this population, these five questions may be used instead of the longer 30-question GDS scale.

Aged↗

Screening swallowing function of patients with acute stroke. Part one: Identification, implementation and initial evaluation of a screening tool for use by nurses.

Stroke is a major cause of acute and chronic disability in the developed world, producing a wide range of impairments, including dysphagia, which impact upon eating. Dysphagia affects between one and two thirds of patients with acute stroke, with the potential for life-threatening airway obstruction, aspiration pneumonia and malnutrition. Whilst associated with increased impairment, dysphagia may present in isolation or accompanied by minimal disability; universal screening of swallowing function is recommended. This study describes the process undertaken to review the evidence for dysphagia screening methods in patients with acute stroke. It also identifies, implements and establishes sensitivity and specificity of a screening tool (the Standardized Swallowing Assessment, SSA) for use by nurses. Not all ward staff had completed training to use the SSA by conclusion of the patient audit. Nonetheless 123 out of 165 assessable patients (74.5%) had their swallow function screened, 64 by SSA (52%). Based on 68 completed screening episodes by independently competent nurses, a comparison with summative clinical judgement of swallow function revealed a sensitivity of 0.97 and specificity of 0.9 for detection of dysphagia, with positive and negative predictive values of 0.92 and 0.96. This was significantly better than gag reflex performance, supporting the use of the SSA by competent ward nurses.

Acute Disease↗

Can safety assurance procedures in the food industry be used to evaluate a medical screening programme? The application of the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point system to an antenatal serum screening programme for Down's syndrome. Stage 1: identifying significant hazards.

RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: Routine review of the Leicestershire district antenatal screening programme for Down's syndrome was carried out by its steering group. This raised suspicions that there were problems with the delivery of the programme. The steering group commissioned a project to adapt the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) system, as used in the food industry, to investigate this. The HACCP system is a systematic qualitative approach to problem identification and solution taken from the perspective of the production workers. This paper presents the first stage of the process, the hazard analysis. METHODS: Preliminary work comprised the preparation and verification of a flow diagram of the screening programme. Data about problems (termed hazards) perceived by Leicestershire health care staff delivering the screening programme were collected by observation, interview and telephone. The problems reported were categorized and assessed to identify those of sufficient importance in terms of their consequences or frequency of occurrence to merit the development of control measures. Hazards relating to operational issues were categorized according to the section of the programme to which they related. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: A total of 16 categories of hazard were identified. In addition, nine groups of hazards constituting barriers to delivery of the screening programme as a whole were identified. The HACCP process made these hazards explicit. The first stage of the HACCP system proved a useful tool to identify problems experienced delivering a Down's serum screening programme and to assess which were sufficiently serious to require the development of control measures.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗

Costs for screening, intervention and hospital treatment generated by the Malmö Preventive Project: a large-scale community screening programme.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to estimate retrospectively the costs of health care resources used in the Malmö Preventive Project, Sweden and estimate the costs of in-patient care that were avoided because of early intervention. SETTING AND SUBJECTS: A large-scale community intervention programme was conducted from 1974 to 1992 in Malmö, Sweden with the aim of reducing morbidity and mortality of cardiovascular diseases (CVD), alcohol related illnesses, and breast cancer. Between 1974 and 1992, 33 336 male and female subjects were screened for hypertension, hyperlipidaemia, type-2 diabetes and alcohol abuse. Intervention programmes that included life-style modifications, follow-up visits with physicians and nurses and drug therapy were offered to about 25% of screened subjects. METHODS: Recruitment costs were generated through out the screening period. Intervention costs were estimated for 5 years after screening. Excess in-patient care costs were estimated by subtracting hospital consumption for an unscreened, matched cohort from that of the screened cohort over follow-up periods of 13-19 years. Intervention and excess in-patient care costs were estimated until 1996. RESULTS: The net expenditures for recruitment and intervention was SEK253 million and saved costs for in-patient care of SEK143 millions (1998 prices). Considering the opportunity cost of the resources used in the study, the net cost rises to about SEK200 millions. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that only part of the intervention costs were offset by reduction in future morbidity health care costs. This is in line with results from prospective analyses of other primary prevention programmes.

Adult↗

The incidence of colorectal cancer following a negative screening sigmoidoscopy: implications for screening interval.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Current guidelines recommend a 5-year interval for colorectal cancer (CRC) screening by sigmoidoscopy. However, the optimal screening interval is uncertain. We estimated the annual incidence of distal and proximal CRC in the first 5 years following a negative sigmoidoscopy examination to gauge the potential benefit of rescreening in <5 years. METHODS: A cohort of 72,483 participants in the Colon Cancer Prevention program of Kaiser Permanente of Northern California (KP) was defined using computerized databases. Men and women aged 50 years and older who had a negative screening flexible sigmoidoscopy examination between 1994 and 1996 and were considered not to be at high risk for developing CRC were included. Subjects were censored at the time of diagnosis (for cases), death, termination of KP membership, or subsequent colon examination. RESULTS: Thirty cases of distal and 80 cases of proximal CRC occurred. Age-adjusted incidence rates of distal CRC ranged from a low of 2.8 per 100,000 person-years in the first year of follow-up to a high of 13.0 per 100,000 in the fourth year (rate difference, 10.2; 95% confidence interval, 1.1-19.3). However, for the entire follow-up period, incidence of distal CRC remained much lower than age-adjusted rates of 70.6 in the general population (Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results registry). The incidence of proximal CRC was also decreased modestly over population rates of disease. CONCLUSIONS: Screening by sigmoidoscopy more frequently than every 5 years would likely lead, at best, to only modest improvements as compared with a 5-year screening interval.

Aged↗

Nutritional benefits of neonatal screening for cystic fibrosis. Wisconsin Cystic Fibrosis Neonatal Screening Study Group.

BACKGROUND: Many patients with cystic fibrosis are malnourished at the time of diagnosis. Whether newborn screening and early treatment may prevent the development of a nutritional deficiency is not known. METHODS: We compared the nutritional status of patients with cystic fibrosis identified by neonatal screening or by standard diagnostic methods. A total of 650,341 newborn infants were screened by measuring immunoreactive trypsinogen on dried blood spots (from April 1985 through June 1991) or by combining the trypsinogen test with DNA analysis (from July 1991 through June 1994). Of 325,171 infants assigned to an early-diagnosis group, cystic fibrosis was diagnosed in 74 infants, including 5 with negative screening tests. Excluding infants with meconium ileus, we evaluated nutritional status for up to 10 years by anthropometric and biochemical methods in 56 of the infants who received an early diagnosis and in 40 of the infants in whom the diagnosis was made by standard methods (the control group). Pancreatic insufficiency was managed with nutritional interventions that included high-calorie diets, pancreatic-enzyme therapy, and fat-soluble vitamin supplements. RESULTS: The diagnosis of cystic fibrosis was confirmed by a positive sweat test at a younger age in the early-diagnosis group than in the control group (mean age, 12 vs. 72 weeks). At the time of diagnosis, the early-diagnosis group had significantly higher height and weight percentiles and a higher head-circumference percentile (52nd, vs. 32nd in the control group; P=0.003). The early-diagnosis group also had significantly higher anthropometric indexes during the follow-up period, especially the children with pancreatic insufficiency and those who were homozygous for the deltaF508 mutation. CONCLUSIONS: Neonatal screening provides the opportunity to prevent malnutrition in infants with cystic fibrosis.

Body Height↗

Screening for dementia in "real world" settings: the cognitive assessment screening test: CAST.

Among elderly people who do not present with complaints of memory impairment, dementia is often missed by physicians, and time-consuming screening tests requiring expertise to administer and interpret are rarely done. Easily administered, reliable and cost effective dementia screening tests are needed for elderly individuals. The "pencil and paper" Cognitive Assessment Screening Test (CAST) takes minimal examiner time/training, and is both sensitive and specific in discriminating demented patients from healthy controls. The objectives of this study were to: (1) confirm the validity of the CAST in identifying individuals with dementia in a real-world setting (nonassisted living retirement community); (2) compare the sensitivity and specificity with other screening tests and extensive psychometric tests; and (3) assess the reliability of the CAST in test-retest conditions over time. The CAST was both sensitive and specific and showed reliability on retesting. The CAST is both simpler to administer and more accurate than other screening tests for elderly subjects.

Aged↗

The parents' view on hearing screening in newborns. Feelings, thoughts and opinions on otoacoustic emissions screening.

Since September 1995, universal hearing screening of newborns has been carried out at the Linköping University Hospital with the aid of otoacoustic emissions. The present study is based on interviews with parents in order to get their views on neonatal hearing screening. A total of 49 persons participated in the interviews, the parents of 26 children. A clearly positive attitude to the test was expressed by a majority of parents, and the screening seemed to cause very little anxiety. Parents whose child passed directly, or after one re-test, were very positive to hearing screening. The few parents whose children had to be tested more than twice took a more ambivalent view. Anxiety was evoked when the child did not pass the first retest; this was a critical point. Another important point was when parents finally were given a definite answer as to whether the child had a hearing impairment or not; the anxiety then seemed to fade. These parents need individual counselling and support during the time of audiological assessment, and a plan for future action. From the parents' perspective the advantage of hearing screening is the potential to help and understand their child at the earliest possible time if a hearing impairment is detected.

Acoustic Stimulation↗

Screening for inhalational anthrax due to bioterrorism: evaluating proposed screening protocols.

Eleven known cases of bioterrorism-related inhalational anthrax (IA) were treated in the United States during 2001. We retrospectively compared 2 methods that have been proposed to screen for IA. The 2 screening protocols for IA were applied to the emergency department charts of patients who presented with possible signs or symptoms of IA at Inova Fairfax Hospital (Falls Church, Virginia) from 20 October 2001 through 3 November 2001. The Mayer criteria would have screened 4 patients (0.4%; 95% CI, 0.1%-0.9%) and generated charges of 1900 dollars. If 29 patients (2.6%; 95% CI, 1.7%-3.7%) with >or=5 symptoms (but without fever and tachycardia) were screened, charges were 13,325 dollars. The Hupert criteria would have screened 273 patients (24%; 95% CI, 22%-27%) and generated charges of 126,025 dollars. In this outbreak of bioterrorism-related IA, applying the Mayer criteria would have identified both patients with IA and would have generated fewer charges than applying the Hupert criteria.

Adult↗

Evaluation of the digital rectal examination as a screening test for prostate cancer. Rotterdam section of the European Randomized Study of Screening for Prostate Cancer.

BACKGROUND: The utility of digital rectal examination (DRE) as a screening test for early detection of prostate cancer has not been established. Therefore, we evaluated the usefulness of DRE as a stand-alone screening test and in conjunction with measured serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels of 0-3.9 ng/mL and transrectal ultrasonography (TRUS). METHODS: Our study population consisted of 10,523 men aged 54-76 years who were randomly assigned to the screening arm of the Rotterdam, The Netherlands, section of the European Randomized Study of Screening for Prostate Cancer. The underlying prevalence of detectable prostate cancer was estimated by logistic regression analysis and used for calculating the sensitivity of DRE as a test. Pathologic characteristics of 105 radical prostatectomy specimens were used to determine the aggressiveness of the tumors diagnosed (and missed) by DRE. RESULTS: The overall detection rate for prostate cancer in this population when serum PSA measurement, DRE, and TRUS were used was 4.5%, and the detection rate with DRE alone was 2.5%. The positive predictive value of DRE ranged from 4% to 11% in men with PSA levels of 0-2.9 ng/mL and from 33% to 83% in men with PSA levels of 3.0-9.9 ng/mL or more. Most tumors detected by DRE in men with PSA levels of less than 4.0 ng/mL were small (mean volumes = 0.24-0.83 mL), and most were well differentiated (Gleason scores of 6 or less). Minimal, moderate, and advanced cancers were seen in 42%, 42%, and 16% of men, respectively, with a PSA level of 4.0 ng/mL or less. DRE alone allowed detection of 264 (55.8%) of 473 cancers; 82 (17.3%) of the 473 cancers would have remained undetected by PSA-based screening alone (i.e., no follow-up procedures for PSA values of 0-3.9 ng/mL). CONCLUSIONS: For PSA values of 0-3.9 ng/mL, the positive predictive value and sensitivity of DRE, tumor volume, and tumor grade were strongly dependent on PSA level. DRE has a poor performance in low PSA ranges.

Aged↗

The accuracy of the CAGE, the Brief Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test, and the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test in screening trauma center patients for alcoholism.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the accuracy of questionnaire screening instruments to identify lifetime alcohol dependence among trauma center patients. METHODS: The study was conducted at a Level I trauma center between September 1994 and November 1996. Patients meeting eligibility requirements (> or = 18 years old, admission from injury scene, > or = 2 days of hospitalization, intact cognition) were evaluated for alcohol abuse and dependence. Screening instruments consisted of the CAGE, the Brief Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test, and the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. Screening results were compared with lifetime alcohol dependence diagnoses made using the in-depth Psychoactive Substance Use Disorders section of the Structured Clinical Interview. Accuracy was quantified as sensitivity, specificity, positive/negative predictive values, and receiver operating characteristic curves (used to calculate area under the curve). RESULTS: Of the 1,118 patients studied, lifetime alcohol dependence was diagnosed by Structured Clinical Interview in 397 (35.5%), and abuse was diagnosed in 90 (8.1%) others. The CAGE was the best predictor of lifetime alcohol dependence, i.e., had the largest area under the curve (93%) and the highest sensitivity (84%), specificity (90%), positive predictive value (82%), and negative predictive value (91%). Among patients testing positive for alcohol, 63% had a lifetime alcohol dependence diagnosis. CONCLUSION: The CAGE is an efficient screening test to detect alcohol dependence in trauma center populations. It should be used in combination with alcohol testing to identify patients at risk of alcohol use problems.

Adolescent↗

Universal screening for interpersonal violence: inability to prove universal screening improves provision of services.

OBJECTIVE: Universal screening for interpersonal violence is recommended despite a lack of confirmed efficacy. We hypothesized that the detection of violence via universal screening would result in high intervention rates for victims. METHODS: Women aged 18-65 years presenting to an emergency department were screened using a standard protocol. Medical and social work records were reviewed for positively screened patients. Outcomes included whether victims received counseling/referral services. Secondary outcomes were the documentation of services offered and safety assessment performed. RESULTS: A total of 1732 patients were evaluated; 615 (35.5%) responded positively to at least one query. Patients had a mean age of 34.7+/-12 years, 79% were non-white, 19% were married, and 76% had completed high school. Twenty-five out of 606 victims (4%) had documentation of violence. Residents were more likely than faculty or nurses to document domestic violence [3.3% (95% confidence interval 1.8-4.8%) versus 2.1 (0.9-3.4) versus 0.7 (0.0-1.4)]. The documentation of police contact, suicide/homicide risk, weapon presence, safety assessment and outside resource referrals occurred in less than 2% of charts. Only two victims were referred to social work (0.3%; 0-0.9%). CONCLUSION: Even in an institution with a heavy emphasis and training on interpersonal violence and alternative mechanisms for universal screening we could not prove that the identification of victims resulted in counseling/referral being offered in the emergency department.

Adolescent↗