Table 1 Study Selection Criteria.
Population: Patients suspicious to have acute appendicitis |
|---|
Diagnostic tests: |
Prediction rules |
Inflammatory markers (C-reactive protein, leucocytes count) |
Transabdominal ultrasound |
Computer Tomography (CT) |
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) |
Scintigraphy |
Diagnostic laparoscopy clinical history and physical examination |
Outcome measures: Test accuracy, morbidity and mortality from misdiagnosis |
Study design: Diagnostic test studies will be selected. They consist of observational studies (prospective or cross-sectional) of defined non-randomised populations in which the results of the diagnostic test of interest are compared with the results of a reference standard allowing generation of a 2 × 2 table to compute indices of diagnostic accuracy. |