Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27608542›Full record

ArticleEpidemiology and infection2017

Exact inference for the risk ratio with an imperfect diagnostic test.

J Reiczigel, J Singer, Z S Lang

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Epidemiology and infection, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

J ReiczigelUniversity of Veterinary Medicine Budapest,Hungary.
J SingerAccelsiors CRO & Consultancy Services Ltd,Budapest,Hungary.
Z S LangUniversity of Veterinary Medicine Budapest,Hungary.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The risk ratio quantifies the risk of disease in a study population relative to a reference population. Standard methods of estimation and testing assume a perfect diagnostic test having sensitivity and specificity of 100%. However, this assumption typically does not hold, and this may invalidate naive estimation and testing for the risk ratio. We propose procedures that control for sensitivity and specificity of the diagnostic test, given the risks are measured by proportions, as it is in cross-sectional studies or studies with fixed follow-up times. These procedures provide an exact unconditional test and confidence interval for the true risk ratio. The methods also cover the case when sensitivity and specificity differ in the two groups (differential misclassification). The resulting test and confidence interval may be useful in epidemiological studies as well as in clinical and vaccine trials. We illustrate the method with real-life examples which demonstrate that ignoring sensitivity and specificity of the diagnostic test may lead to considerable bias in the estimated risk ratio.

Indexed as

AdultAgedAged, 80 and overAnimalsClinical Trials as TopicCommunicable DiseasesDiagnostic Tests, RoutineEpidemiologic MethodsFemaleHumansMaleOdds RatioSensitivity and SpecificityYoung AdultExact confidence intervalexact unconditional testmisclassificationprevalence ratiorelative risk

Identifiers

PMID27608542
PMCPMC9507328

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.