Table 3:

QUADAS tool

ItemYesNoUnclear
1)Was the spectrum of patients representative of the patients who will receive the test in practice?( )( )( )
2)Were selection criteria clearly described?( )( )( )
3)Is the reference standard likely to correctly classify the target condition?( )( )( )
4)Is the time period between reference standard and index test short enough to be reasonably sure that the target condition did not change between the 2 tests?( )( )( )
5)Did the whole sample or a random selection of the sample receive verification using a reference standard of diagnosis?( )( )( )
6)Did patients receive the same reference standard regardless of the index test result?( )( )( )
7)Was the reference standard independent of the index test (ie, the index test did not form part of the reference standard)?( )( )( )
8)Was the execution of the index test described in sufficient detail to permit replication of the test?( )( )( )
9)Was the execution of the reference standard described in sufficient detail to permit its replication?( )( )( )
10)Were the index test results interpreted without knowledge of the results of the reference standard?( )( )( )
11)Were the reference standard results interpreted without knowledge of the results of the index test?( )( )( )
12)Were the same clinical data available when test results were interpreted as would be available when the test is used in practice?( )( )( )
13)Were uninterpretable/intermediate test results reported?( )( )( )
14)Were withdrawals from the study explained?( )( )( )