10 Important Blood Tests

The question gives us the total number of subjects and the prevalence of biopsy-proven prostate cancer. It also gives us the sensitivity and specificity of the the PSA test that they used, so we can construct the contingency table from this information, and then compute the positive predictive value. Results of US are paired with levels of pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A) and a hormone known as human chorionic gonadotropin .

, who will be reassured that they don’t have disease, when they really do. These hazards of screening must be considered before a screening program is undertaken. false negatives, people who test negative even though they really have disease. These three scenarios all illustrate the consequences of HIV testing using a test that is 100% sensitive and 99.5% specific.

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Mean corpuscular (kor-PUS-kyu-lar) volume is a measure of the average size of your red blood cells. Abnormal MCV levels may be a sign of anemia or thalassemia.

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• Altering the criterion for a positive test (“abnormality”) will always influence both the sensitivity and specificity of the test.
• If we move the cut-off to the right, the specificity will improve, but the sensitivity will be worse.
• The column with diseased subjects is emphasized, since sensitivity focuses on the probability that the test will correctly identify diseased subjects.
• If we move the cut-off to the left, we can increase the sensitivity, but the specificity will be worse.
• However, where the distributions overlap, there is a “gray zone” in which there is much less certainly about the results.

Most complications are minor and go away shortly after the tests are done. The procedure usually is quick and easy, although it may cause some short-term discomfort. Most people don’t have serious reactions to having blood drawn.

Abnormal hemoglobin levels may be a sign of anemia, sickle cell anemia, thalassemia (thal-a-SE-me-ah), or other blood disorders. Red blood cells carry oxygen from your lungs to the rest of your body. Abnormal red blood cell levels may be testosterone supplements a sign of anemia, dehydration , bleeding, or another disorder.

Hematocrit (hee-MAT-oh-crit) is a measure of how much space red blood cells take up in your blood. Abnormal hematocrit levels also may be a sign of a blood or bone marrow disorder. Hemoglobin (HEE-muh-glow-bin) is an iron-rich protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen.