| sensitivity and specificity | Measures for assessing the results of diagnostic and screening tests. Sensitivity represents the proportion of truly diseased persons in a screened population who are identified as being diseased by the test. It is a measure of the probability of correctly diagnosing a condition. Specificity is the proportion of truly nondiseased persons who are so identified by the screening test. It is a measure of the probability of correctly identifying a nondiseased person. (12 Dec 1998) |
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| analytical specificity | Freedom from interference by any element or compound other than the analyte. (05 Mar 2000) |
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| antibody specificity | The property of antibodies which enables them to react with some antigenic determinants and not with others. Specificity is dependent on chemical composition, physical forces, and molecular structure at the binding site. (12 Dec 1998) |
| biological specificity | <biology, zoology> The specific, orderly patterns of development and metabolism which define and characterise an individual and its species. (21 Mar 1998) |
| relative specificity | The specificity of a medical screening test as determined by comparison with the same type of test (e.g., specificity of a new serological test relative to specificity of an established serological test). (05 Mar 2000) |
| species specificity | Restriction of a characteristic or response to the members of one species; it usually refers to that property of the immune response which differentiates one species from another on the basis of antigen recognition, but the concept is not limited to immunology and is used loosely at levels higher than the species. (12 Dec 1998) |
| specificity | The ability of the immune response to interact with individual antigens. (09 Oct 1997) |
| specificity constant | Ratio of the maximum velocity (Vmax) or kcat to the true Km value for a specific substrate in an enzyme-catalyzed reaction. (05 Mar 2000) |
| substrate specificity | A characteristic feature of enzyme activity in relation to the kind of substrate on which the enzyme or catalytic molecule reacts. (12 Dec 1998) |
| diagnostic specificity | The probability (P) that, given the absence of disease (D), a normal test result (T) excludes disease; i.e., P(T/D). (05 Mar 2000) |
| organ specificity | Restriction of a characteristic or response to a particular organ of the body; it usually refers to that property of the immune response which differentiates one organ from another on the basis of antigen recognition, but the concept is not limited to immunology. (12 Dec 1998) |
| acquired sensitivity | 1. <immunology> A state of hypersensitivity induced by exposure to a particular antigen (allergen) resulting in harmful immunologic reactions on subsequent exposures, the term is usually used to refer to hypersensitivity to an environmental antigen (atopic allergy or contact dermatitis) or to drug allergy. The original meaning, now obsolete, included all states of altered immunologic reactivity, immunity as well as hypersensitivity. Gell and Coombs used the term allergic reaction to mean any harmful immunologic reaction causing tissue injury. 2. <study> The medical specialty dealing with diagnosis and treatment of allergic disorders. (18 Nov 1997) |
| analytical sensitivity | The degree of response to a change in concentration of analyte being measured in an assay; synonymous with the detection limit. (05 Mar 2000) |
| antibiotic sensitivity | Microbial susceptibility to antibiotics. See: antibiotic sensitivity test, minimal inhibitory concentration. (05 Mar 2000) |
| antibiotic sensitivity test | The in vitro testing of bacterial cultures with antibiotics to determine susceptibility of bacteria to antibiotic therapy. (05 Mar 2000) |
| pacemaker sensitivity | The minimum cardiac activity required to consistently trigger a pulse generator. (05 Mar 2000) |