ObjectiveTo systematically review the diagnostic value of ultrasound for breast cancer with axillary sentinel lymph nodes, so as to provide evidence for clinical decision-making. MethodsWe searched the databases including PubMed, EMbase, The Cochrane Library (Issue 12, 2013), CBM, CNKI, WanFang Data and VIP for studies about ultrasound in the diagnosis of breast cancer with axillary sentinel lymph nodes till December 31st, 2013. According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, literature was screened, data were extracted, and methodological quality of the included studies was evaluated. Meta-analysis was then conducted using Meta-Disc 1.4 software. ResultsA total of 12 studies involving 2 188 cases were included. The pooled results of meta-analysis showed that sensitivity and specificity were 0.75 (95%CI 0.72 to 0.77) and 0.91 (95%CI 0.89 to 0.92), respectively; positive likelihood ratio and negative likelihood ratio were 6.54 (95%CI 4.68 to 8.89) and 0.22 (95%CI 0.15 to 0.33), respectively; diagnostic odds ratio was 33.59 (95%CI 17.87 to 63.12); and the AUC was 0.934 3. ConclusionUltrasound is has relatively high value in diagnosis of breast cancer with axillary sentinel lymph nodes. However, due to the influence caused by the limited quality and various potential heterogeneity, more high quality RCTs with large sample size are needed to further verify the above conclusion.
ObjectiveTo evaluate the diagnostic accuracy and efficacy of X-ray for evaluating the tip position of umbilical venous catheterization (UVC). MethodsThe PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, CBM, CNKI, VIP and WanFang Data databases were electronically searched to collect diagnostic tests for UVC tip localisation from inception to 1 May 2023. Two reviewers independently screened the literature according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, extracted the data and assessed the quality of the studies using the QUADAS-2 tool. Then, meta-analysis was performed by using Stata 16.0 software. Results Twelve articles involving 1 055 patients were included. The sensitivity and specificity of Negar Yazdani’s study were both 100%. The results of the meta-analysis (the remaining eleven articles, n=951) indicated a pooled sensitivity of 0.7 (95%CI 0.6 to 0.8), a pooled specificity of 0.8 (95%CI 0.7 to 0.9), a positive likelihood ratio of 4.0 (95%CI 2.0 to 8.1), a negative likelihood ratio of 0.4 (95%CI 0.2 to 0.6) and a diagnostic odds ratio of 11 (95%CI 3 to 36) with an area under the cumulative receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.8 (95%CI 0.8 to 0.9). A subgroup analysis was performed according to the different methods of judging X, the 8th–9th thoracic, the 9th–10th thoracic and combined judgement of the diaphragmatic plane + the vertebral body + the heart shadow. The sensitivities of the 3 groups were 0.8 (95%CI 0.5 to 0.9), 0.5 (95%CI 0.4 to 0.7) and 0.8 (95%CI 0.6 to 0.9); the specificities of the 3 groups were 0.8 (95%CI 0.6 to 0.9), 0.76 (95%CI 0.6 to 0.9) and 0.91 (95%CI 0.79 to 0.96). The areas under the cumulative receiver operating characteristic curve were 0.9 (95%CI 0.8 to 0.9), 0.7 (95%CI 0.6 to 0.7) and 0.92 (95%CI 0.89 to 0.94). ConclusionSome error is present when determining the catheter tip position by X-ray, in which the evaluation of the umbilical vein catheter tip position through a comprehensive evaluation of the diaphragmatic plane, the heart margin and the vertebral body is more powerful than the evaluation of the vertebral body alone.
Objective To determine the best threshold value of hemoglobin A2 (HbA2) for diagnosis of β-thalassemia (β-thal) carriers by using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and to improve the application value of HbA2 as a diagnostic index for β-thal carriers to reduce the rates of missed diagnosis and misdiagnosis. Methods Using reverse dot blot (RDB) as a gold standard method, HbA2 results of 1 007 β-thal carriers and 606 normal controls in the past two years determined by HPLC were divided into true positive, false positive, true negative, and false negative based on the different threshold values of HbA2 results. Then, the evaluation indexes such as sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative likelihood ratio, and Youden’s index were evaluated. Next, the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve was drawn to determine the best threshold value of HbA2 for diagnosis of β-thal carriers by HPLC. Results If ≥4.0% was taken as the threshold value of HbA2 for diagnosis of β-thal carriers by HPLC, the evaluation indexes values were shown as follows: sensitivity 99.21%, specificity 99.34%, positive likelihood ratio 150.30, negative likelihood ratio 0.008, and Youden’s index 0.99. The Youden’s index was better than the other threshold values, and the corresponding tangent point was the peak point of the ROC curve. Conclusion When ≥4.0% serves as the best threshold value of HbA2 for diagnosis of β-thal carriers using HPLC, integrated evaluation performance of the corresponding sensitivity and specificity is the most ideal, and the authenticity of the diagnostic test is the best.
Objective To evaluate the diagnostic value of all diagnostic tests for detecting armazide resistance in mycobacterium tuberculosis. Methods We searched PUBMED, EMBASE, CBM, CSJD and CJFD. QUADAS items were used to evaluate the quality of included studies. Meta-disc software was used to handle data from included studies. Results Twelve studies were included. Meta-analyses showed that the summary sensitivity and summary specificity of nitrate reductase assay were 92% and 99%, and those of BACTEC MGIT 960 system were 93% and 96%, respectively. The SROC of nitrate reductase assay and BACTEC MGIT 960 system were 0.9836 and 0.9862, respectively. Conclusion We recommend that proportion method can be replaced by nitrate reductase assay as a screening test for detecting armazide resistance in mycobacterium tuberculosis, and BACTEC 460 can be replaced by BACTEC MGIT 960 system as a final diagnostic test for detecting armazide resistance in mycobacterium tuberculosis.
Objective To evaluate the diagnostic value of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-D detection for the diagnosis of lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) by Meta-analysis. Methods Literatures published before August 2017 were retrieved from PubMed, Embase, China Biology Medicine database, China National Knowledge Internet, Wangfang, and VIP database to retrieve the study about VEGF-D detection for LAM. The studies were screened according to the inclusive and exclusive criteria, the data were extracted, the quality was assessed and the Meta-analysis was performed with related statistical software. Results Six primary studies were included and 521 patients met the inclusion criterion. The Meta-analysis showed the pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio and diagnostic odds ratio of 0.75 [95% confidence interval (CI) (0.70, 0.79)], 0.95 [95%CI (0.91, 0.98)], 16.20 [95%CI (8.70, 30.19)], 0.20 [95%CI (0.10, 0.40)] and 89.49 [95%CI (38.46, 208.22)], respectively. The area under the curve was 0.953 9. Conclusions VEGF-D detection showes a good diagnostic value for LAM. A positive result is more clinical meaningful compared with a negative result, helping for the confirmation of the disease.
ObjectiveTo systematically review the diagnostic accuracy of C-arm cone-beam CT (CBCT)-guided percutaneous transthoracic needle biopsy (PTNB) for lung nodules. MethodsWe electronically searched databases including PubMed, EMbase, EBSCO, Ovid, CBM, VIP, WanFang Data and CNKI from inception to Feb 28th, 2015, to collect diagnostic studies of CBCT-guided PTNB for lung nodules. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data and assessed the methodological quality of included studies by QUADAS-1 tool. Then, meta-analysis was performed by Stata 12.0 and Meta-DiSc 1.4 softwares for calculating pooled sensitivity (Sen), specificity (Spe), positive likelihood ration (+LR), negative likelihood ration (-LR), and diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), drawing summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) curve and estimating area under the curve (AUC). ResultsA total of 9 studies involving 1 815 patients were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that the pooled Sen, Spe, +LR,-LR, and DOR were 0.95 (95%CI 0.92 to 0.96), 1.00 (95%CI 0.66 to 1.00), 2 076.58 (95%CI 1.8 to 2.3e+0.6), 0.05 (95%CI 0.04 to 0.08), and 39 443.88 (95%CI 30.53 to 5.1e+0.7), respectively. The AUC of SROC was 0.97 (95%CI 0.95 to 0.98). ConclusionCBCT-guided PTNB can be used as one of the primary examination approaches for lung nodules with relatively high diagnostic accuracy. Due to limited quality and quantity of the included studies, more high quality studies are needed to verify the above conclusion.
ObjectiveTo systematically review the value of mass screening of serum pepsinogen test for Asian population with high-risk gastric carcinoma. MethodsWe electronically searched databases including PubMed, EMbase, The Cochrane Library (Issue 12, 2013), CNKI, WanFang Data, VIP and CBM for diagnostic tests on serum pepsinogen test versus with pathological biopsy/X-ray examination (gold standard) between January 2004 and January 2014. Two reviewers independently screened literature according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, extracted data, and assessed methodological quality of included studies. Then meta-analysis was conducted using Meta-DiSc software (version 1.4). ResultsA total of 15 studies involving 180 934 subjects were included. ROC curve showed "shoulder-arm shape" distribution. The results of Spearman correlation analysis suggested a significance of the threshold effect (P=0.001). The results of meta-analysis showed that, the area under curve (AUC) was 0.74. ConclusionSerum pepsinogen has good value in the screening of gastric carcinoma among Asian permanent residents. Due to limited quality of studies, the above conclusion should be verified by conducting more high quality studies.
ObjectiveTo systematically review the differential diagnostic value of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) and contrast-enhanced CT (CECT) for renal solid space-occupying lesions. MethodsDatabases including EMbase, PubMed, The Cochrane Library (Issue 11, 2014), CNKI, CBM, VIP and WanFang Data were searched for diagnostic tests about CEUS and CECT for renal solid space-occupying lesions from inception to September, 2014. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data and assessed the methodological quality of included studies. Then meta-analysis was performed using Meta-Disc 1.4 software. ResultsA total of 13 studies involving 754 specimens were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that:the sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, diagnostic odds ratio (combined effect and its 95%CI) in the CEUS group were 0.96 (95%CI 0.94 to 0.97), 0.77 (95%CI 0.70 to 0.83), 3.82 (95%CI 2.93 to 4.97), 0.06 (95%CI 0.04 to 0.10), 64.33 (95%CI 36.79 to 112.51), and in the CECT group were 0.84 (95%CI 0.81 to 0.87), 0.73 (95%CI 0.65 to 0.79), 2.81 (95%CI 2.22 to 3.56), 0.23 (95%CI 0.16 to 0.34), 13.85 (95%CI 6.79 to 28.26). There were significant differences between the CEUS group (0.960 8, 95%CI 0.927 3 to 0.994 3) and the CECT group (0.866 8, 95%CI 0.788 8 to 0.944 8) in the area under the summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) curve (P<0.05). The similar results were observed in cases with small renal tumors≤4 cm (AUC:0.973 7 vs. 0.861 3, P<0.05). ConclusionCEUS has higher differential diagnostic value than CECT for renal solid space-occupying lesions.
Objective To systematically review the value of ultrasound in the diagnosis of fracture of the distal radius and ulna for providing evidence for clinical diagnosis. MethodsWe searched PubMed, EMbase, The Cochrane Library (Issue 7, 2016), CNKI, CBM and WanFang Data databases for studies about ultrasound in the diagnosis of fracture of the distal radius and ulna from inception to August 1st, 2016. Two reviewers independently screened literatures according to inclusion and exclusion criteria, extracted data, and assessed the risk of bias of included studies by using the QUADAS-2 (Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies 2) tool, and then meta-analysis was performed by using Meta-Disc 1.4 software. ResultsA total of 16 articles involving 1 182 patients and 631 fractures were included. The results of heterogeneity test revealed that there was statistical heterogeneity among the results of studies, thus, random effects model was used for meta-analysis. The results of meta-analysis showed that the pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, diagnosis odds ratio for ultrasound diagnosis fracture of the distal radius and ulna were 0.95 (95%CI 0.94 to 0.97), 0.92 (95%CI 0.89 to 0.94), 9.98 (95%CI 5.20 to 19.15), 0.07 (95%CI 0.04 to 0.13), 187.94 (95%CI 65.67 to 537.84), respectively. The area under the SROC curve was 0.976 4. ConclusionUltrasound is a useful non-invasive method as a routine examination for fracture of the distal radius and ulna. Due to the limited quality and quantity of included studies, the above conclusion is needed to be validated by more high-quality studies.