Structured approach to design of diagnostic test evaluation studies for chronic progressive infections in animals

Søren Saxmose Nielsen (1, 2) , Nils Toft (1, 2) , Ian Andrew Gardner (1, 2)

1 Faculty of Life Science [Copenhagen]
2 Department of Medicine and Epidemiology

Diagnostic test evaluations (DTEs) for chronic infections are challenging because a protracted incubation period has to be considered in the design of the DTE, and the adverse effects of infection may be widespread and progressive over an animal's entire life. Frequently, the specific purpose of the test is not formally considered when a test is evaluated. Therefore, the result is often a DTE where test sensitivity and specificity estimates are biased, either because of problems with establishing the true infection status or because the test detects another aspect of the infection (and analyte) than originally intended.

Mots clés: chronic infectious diseases; design strategy; diagnostic test evaluation; paratuberculosis

Domaines: Médecine vétérinaire et santé animale

Søren Saxmose Nielsen, Nils Toft, Ian Andrew Gardner. Structured approach to design of diagnostic test evaluation studies for chronic progressive infections in animals. Veterinary Microbiology, 2011, 150 (1-2), pp.115. ⟨10.1016/j.vetmic.2011.01.019⟩. ⟨hal-00687332⟩