title: Optimal batch size for estimation of the prevalence of a disease using combined samples.
abstract: Great attention has been given to the combined sample test for its high efficiency. Here a model of mathematical expectation for combined samples has been worked out and used for investigating the prevalence of HCV in serum from blood donors. It was shown that this model was valuable if the probability of a positive test, e.g. the prevalence, is less than 0.31.
authors.affiliation: Fuyang Hospital, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Meng
authors.forename: Q
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Fang
mesh_terms: D001782:Blood Donors; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D015233:Models, Statistical; D015995:Prevalence; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012494:Sampling Studies; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D013048:Specimen Handling / Q000379:methods*