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Review
Evidence of bias and variation in diagnostic accuracy studies.
February 14, 2006
Rutjes AWS, Reitsma JB, Di Nisio M, et al. CMAJ. 2006;174(4):469-476.
Clinician and patient understanding of the benefits and risks of screening tests can prevent both under- and over-diagnosis; as such, screening and diagnostic tests must provide accurate results. This review identified 31 meta-analyses with 487 studies of test evaluation. Study design (e.g., retrospective, prospective) greatly impacted estimated accuracy, highlighting the importance of considering design when conducting studies.
