Medical Tests in Context
Medical Tests in Context

Author: Randi Minetor

Publisher:

Published:

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13:

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This encyclopedia examines more than 125 of the most important and commonly performed medical tests, providing readers with information about how and why they are performed and how each test contributes to monitoring health and diagnosing and treating medical conditions. Whether it's to proactively monitor health, diagnose a condition, or assess how well a particular treatment is working, we all undergo a variety of medical tests throughout our lives. While these tests provide valuable information for doctors and patients, they can sometimes carry significant risks, provide ambiguous or incorrect results, or raise more questions than they answer. Contrary to what some may think, medical testing isn't a simple "yes or no" science carried out by computers in a lab--it is a dynamic process that relies heavily on human detective work and interpretation. Medical Tests in Context: Innovations and Insights highlights more than 125 tests performed across a wide range of medical specialties. Each entry in this encyclopedia follows a standardized format that provides readers with information about how, when, and why the test is conducted; the preparation and risks; how results are determined and where errors might occur; and its history. A collection of case studies offers real-world examples of the successes--and shortcomings--of medical testing.

Reducing the Odds
Reducing the Odds

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 1999-02-13

Total Pages: 426

ISBN-13: 9780309062862

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Thousands of HIV-positive women give birth every year. Further, because many pregnant women are not tested for HIV and therefore do not receive treatment, the number of children born with HIV is still unacceptably high. What can we do to eliminate this tragic and costly inheritance? In response to a congressional request, this book evaluates the extent to which state efforts have been effective in reducing the perinatal transmission of HIV. The committee recommends that testing HIV be a routine part of prenatal care, and that health care providers notify women that HIV testing is part of the usual array of prenatal tests and that they have an opportunity to refuse the HIV test. This approach could help both reduce the number of pediatric AIDS cases and improve treatment for mothers with AIDS. Reducing the Odds will be of special interest to federal, state, and local health policymakers, prenatal care providers, maternal and child health specialists, public health practitioners, and advocates for HIV/AIDS patients. January

Improving Diagnosis in Health Care
Improving Diagnosis in Health Care

Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2015-12-29

Total Pages: 473

ISBN-13: 0309377722

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Getting the right diagnosis is a key aspect of health care - it provides an explanation of a patient's health problem and informs subsequent health care decisions. The diagnostic process is a complex, collaborative activity that involves clinical reasoning and information gathering to determine a patient's health problem. According to Improving Diagnosis in Health Care, diagnostic errors-inaccurate or delayed diagnoses-persist throughout all settings of care and continue to harm an unacceptable number of patients. It is likely that most people will experience at least one diagnostic error in their lifetime, sometimes with devastating consequences. Diagnostic errors may cause harm to patients by preventing or delaying appropriate treatment, providing unnecessary or harmful treatment, or resulting in psychological or financial repercussions. The committee concluded that improving the diagnostic process is not only possible, but also represents a moral, professional, and public health imperative. Improving Diagnosis in Health Care, a continuation of the landmark Institute of Medicine reports To Err Is Human (2000) and Crossing the Quality Chasm (2001), finds that diagnosis-and, in particular, the occurrence of diagnostic errorsâ€"has been largely unappreciated in efforts to improve the quality and safety of health care. Without a dedicated focus on improving diagnosis, diagnostic errors will likely worsen as the delivery of health care and the diagnostic process continue to increase in complexity. Just as the diagnostic process is a collaborative activity, improving diagnosis will require collaboration and a widespread commitment to change among health care professionals, health care organizations, patients and their families, researchers, and policy makers. The recommendations of Improving Diagnosis in Health Care contribute to the growing momentum for change in this crucial area of health care quality and safety.

Assessment of the Scientific Information for the Radiation Exposure Screening and Education Program
Assessment of the Scientific Information for the Radiation Exposure Screening and Education Program

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2005-10-01

Total Pages: 431

ISBN-13: 0309096103

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The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) was set up by Congress in 1990 to compensate people who have been diagnosed with specified cancers and chronic diseases that could have resulted from exposure to nuclear-weapons tests at various U.S. test sites. Eligible claimants include civilian onsite participants, downwinders who lived in areas currently designated by RECA, and uranium workers and ore transporters who meet specified residence or exposure criteria. The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), which oversees the screening, education, and referral services program for RECA populations, asked the National Academies to review its program and assess whether new scientific information could be used to improve its program and determine if additional populations or geographic areas should be covered under RECA. The report recommends Congress should establish a new science-based process using a method called "probability of causation/assigned share" (PC/AS) to determine eligibility for compensation. Because fallout may have been higher for people outside RECA-designated areas, the new PC/AS process should apply to all residents of the continental US, Alaska, Hawaii, and overseas US territories who have been diagnosed with specific RECA-compensable diseases and who may have been exposed, even in utero, to radiation from U.S. nuclear-weapons testing fallout. However, because the risks of radiation-induced disease are generally low at the exposure levels of concern in RECA populations, in most cases it is unlikely that exposure to radioactive fallout was a substantial contributing cause of cancer.

Medical Tests in Context
Medical Tests in Context

Author: Randi Minetor

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 2019-10-07

Total Pages: 320

ISBN-13:

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This encyclopedia examines more than 125 of the most important and commonly performed medical tests, providing readers with information about how and why they are performed and how each test contributes to monitoring health and diagnosing and treating medical conditions. Whether it's to proactively monitor health, diagnose a condition, or assess how well a particular treatment is working, we all undergo a variety of medical tests throughout our lives. While these tests provide valuable information for doctors and patients, they can sometimes carry significant risks, provide ambiguous or incorrect results, or raise more questions than they answer. Contrary to what some may think, medical testing isn't a simple "yes or no" science carried out by computers in a lab—it is a dynamic process that relies heavily on human detective work and interpretation. Medical Tests in Context: Innovations and Insights highlights more than 125 tests performed across a wide range of medical specialties. Each entry in this encyclopedia follows a standardized format that provides readers with information about how, when, and why the test is conducted; the preparation and risks; how results are determined and where errors might occur; and its history. A collection of case studies offers real-world examples of the successes—and shortcomings—of medical testing.

Assessment of Diagnostic Technology in Health Care
Assessment of Diagnostic Technology in Health Care

Author: Institute of Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 1989-02-01

Total Pages: 152

ISBN-13: 030904099X

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Technology assessment can lead to the rapid application of essential diagnostic technologies and prevent the wide diffusion of marginally useful methods. In both of these ways, it can increase quality of care and decrease the cost of health care. This comprehensive monograph carefully explores methods of and barriers to diagnostic technology assessment and describes both the rationale and the guidelines for meaningful evaluation. While proposing a multi-institutional approach, it emphasizes some of the problems involved and defines a mechanism for improving the evaluation and use of medical technology and essential resources needed to enhance patient care.

Diagnostic Molecular Pathology
Diagnostic Molecular Pathology

Author: William B. Coleman

Publisher: Academic Press

Published: 2023-10-18

Total Pages: 846

ISBN-13: 0128229934

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Diagnostic Molecular Pathology: A Guide to Applied Molecular Testing, Second Edition assembles a group of experts to discuss the molecular basis and mechanisms of major human diseases and disease processes and how the molecular features of disease can be harnessed to develop practical molecular tests for disease detection, diagnosis and prognosis. The book explains how molecular tests are utilized in the treatment of patients in personalized medicine, highlights new technologies and approaches of applied molecular pathology, and discusses how this discovery-based research yields new and useful biomarkers and tests. As it is essential to stay up-to-date on new molecular diagnostics in this changing field, this book covers critically important areas in the practice of personalized medicine and reflects our understanding of the pathology, pathogenesis and pathophysiology of human disease. - Includes new material on mass spectrometry for infectious diseases, microbiome, homology-directed repair for PARPi, whole genome sequencing for constitutional testing, and much more - Provides insights on the value of the molecular test in comparison to traditional methods, which include speed, precision, sensitivity and clinical impacts for the patient - Focuses on the menu of molecular diagnostic tests available in modern molecular pathology or clinical laboratories that can be applied to disease detection, diagnosis and classification in the clinical workup of a patient - Explains how molecular tests are utilized to guide the treatment of patients in personalized medicine (guided therapies) and for the prognostication of disease

An Evidence Framework for Genetic Testing
An Evidence Framework for Genetic Testing

Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2017-04-21

Total Pages: 149

ISBN-13: 0309453291

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Advances in genetics and genomics are transforming medical practice, resulting in a dramatic growth of genetic testing in the health care system. The rapid development of new technologies, however, has also brought challenges, including the need for rigorous evaluation of the validity and utility of genetic tests, questions regarding the best ways to incorporate them into medical practice, and how to weigh their cost against potential short- and long-term benefits. As the availability of genetic tests increases so do concerns about the achievement of meaningful improvements in clinical outcomes, costs of testing, and the potential for accentuating medical care inequality. Given the rapid pace in the development of genetic tests and new testing technologies, An Evidence Framework for Genetic Testing seeks to advance the development of an adequate evidence base for genetic tests to improve patient care and treatment. Additionally, this report recommends a framework for decision-making regarding the use of genetic tests in clinical care.

Diagnostic Genetic Testing
Diagnostic Genetic Testing

Author: David Bourn

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2021-11-13

Total Pages: 145

ISBN-13: 3030855104

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Over the last decade, technical advances have allowed genomic testing which provides a great opportunity for diagnosis but also an increased chance of uncertain or unexpected findings. This book addresses many of the questions that arise in this context and summarizes the essential concepts in diagnostic genetic testing in an easy-to-read manner. It also covers some broad context for the practical and ethical implications of examining human DNA sequences. The book starts with a general introduction to the field, providing enough background to allow readers without any previous education in genetics to comprehend the material in the subsequent chapters. The main part explores differing aspects of human genetics and the wider implications of testing in these areas. The author covers not only single gene inheritance, but also genetic testing of cancers and how testing benefits the patients. Special emphasis is also given to the questions of genetics and identity. The concluding part then draws the main themes together and summarises the wider significance of genetics. It also explores the gap between promises made for the impact of advances in genetics, and the actual benefits to patients. The book is written for everyone interested to learn about the process of genetic testing and the broader implications. Moreover, it is aimed at health professionals with an interest in genetics, at students or scientific trainees looking for an introduction to diagnostic genetics, and at professionals in health policy or health journalism.

Systematic Reviews in Health Care
Systematic Reviews in Health Care

Author: Matthias Egger

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2008-04-15

Total Pages: 512

ISBN-13: 0470693142

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The second edition of this best-selling book has been thoroughly revised and expanded to reflect the significant changes and advances made in systematic reviewing. New features include discussion on the rationale, meta-analyses of prognostic and diagnostic studies and software, and the use of systematic reviews in practice.