title: Sensitivity of immunochemical fecal occult blood test for colorectal flat adenomas.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the sensitivity of an immunochemical fecal occult blood test for colorectal flat adenomas, and to determine the relation between the size of flat adenomas and the results of this test.
  
  
  METHODS
  Eleven colorectal flat adenomas under 1cm, 18 flat adenomas 1cm or larger, 187 polypoid adenomas under 1cm, 42 polypoid adenomas 1cm or larger and 144 healthy controls were investigated. Each subject was tested with an immunochemical occult blood test on two consecutive days, and the accuracy of this test was evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The sensitivity of this test was 18% for flat adenomas under 1cm, 67% for flat adenomas 1cm or more, 19% for polypoid adenomas under 1cm and 60% for polypoid adenomas 1cm or more. Specificity was 95%, showing a significant difference in the sensitivity between flat adenomas 1cm or more and those under 1cm (p<0.05) as well as a significant difference between flat adenomas 1cm or more and polypoid adenomas under 1cm (p<0.001), whereas no significant difference was seen in the sensitivity between flat adenomas 1cm or more and polypoid adenomas 1cm or more.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results indicate that the sensitivity of immunochemical occult test for flat adenomas was similar to the sensitivity for common polypoid adenomas. The size of adenomas is a more important morphological factor for determining the sensitivity of this fecal occult blood test.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Shinshu University School of Medicine, and 2Department of Internal Medicine Hata Central Hospital, Japan.
authors.forename: Hidenori
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nakama
authors.forename: Bing
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Noboru
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kamijo
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000473:pathology*; D000236:Adenoma / Q000175:diagnosis*; D018256:Adenomatous Polyps / Q000175:diagnosis*; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis; D002471:Cell Transformation, Neoplastic / Q000473:pathology; D003111:Colonic Polyps / Q000175:diagnosis*; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D007413:Intestinal Mucosa / Q000473:pathology; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness / Q000473:pathology; D009780:Occult Blood; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor