Subject(s)
Child , Child, Preschool , Diagnosis, Differential , Female , Humans , Male , Sarcoma, Small Cell/diagnosis , Thoracic Neoplasms/diagnosisABSTRACT
The Naked Eye Single Tube Red Cell Osmotic Fragility Test (NESTROFT) was applied to 4 groups of subjects: (i) Normal; (ii) Proven beta-thalassemia trait carriers; (iii) Iron deficiency anemia; and (iv) other hemoglobinopathies, to evaluate its effectiveness as a screening test for beta-thalassemia minor. The test was successful in detecting 105/110 subjects with beta-thalassemia trait. The sensitivity of the test was 95.5% and specificity was 87%. The predictive value of the positive test was 70.5% and that of the negative test was 98.3%. NESTROFT was also positive in 9/17 subjects with HbS trait, in 3/3 subjects with HbD trait and in 1/1 subjects with HbE trait. The test proved to be simple, cheap, easy to perform and adaptable for field surveys, coming close to an ideal screening test for beta-thalassemia minor.
Subject(s)
Child , Diagnostic Errors , Erythrocyte Count , Erythrocytes/pathology , Hematologic Tests/instrumentation , Genetic Carrier Screening , Humans , India , Osmotic Fragility , Predictive Value of Tests , Thalassemia/bloodABSTRACT
The aim of this study was to determine independent patient-related predictors of mortality in high risk newborns admitted at our centre. The study population comprised 100 consecutive newborns each, from the premature unit (PU) and sick baby care unit (SBCU), respectively. Thirteen high risk factors (variables) for each of the two units, were entered into a multivariate regression analysis. Variables with independent predictive value for poor outcome (i.e., death) in PU were, weight less than 1 kg, hyaline membrane disease, neurologic problems, and intravenous therapy. High risk factors in SBCU included, blood gas abnormality, bleeding phenomena, recurrent convulsions, apnea, and congenital anomalies. Identification of these factors guided us in defining priority areas for improvement in our system of neonatal care. Also, based on these variables a simple predictive score for outcome was constructed. The prediction equation and the score were cross-validated by applying them to a 'test-set' of 100 newborns each for PU and SBCU. Results showed a comparable sensitivity, specificity and error rate.