Diagnostic properties of a symptoms scale for diagnosing reflux esophagitis.
OBJECTIVE
To the objective of the study was to determine accuracy and predictive values of a symptoms scale for diagnosing reflux esophagitis (RE).


METHODS
Standard criterion study. All recruited patients from two centers in Chile underwent both digestive endoscopy (reference standard) and a symptoms scale known to be valid and reliable for diagnosing gastroesophageal reflux disease. The RE variable was dealt with dichotomously. A receiver operating characteristic curve was constructed. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and positive and negative likelihood ratios of the scale were calculated.


RESULTS
Two hundred and thirty eight (238) subjects (57.6% female), with an average age of 44.2+/-13.0 years were included. Of these, 57.1% presented with RE. With a cut-off score of six, association was confirmed between the symptoms scale and RE with an odds ratio of 7.26 and a correct classification i.e. diagnostic accuracy of 73.1%. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, positive and negative likelihood ratios, of 74.3%, 71.6%, 77.7%, 67.6%, 2.61, and 0.36 respectively, were obtained.


CONCLUSIONS
A seven-item symptoms scale when compared to endoscopy as gold standard was useful for diagnosing RE. Using a cutoff of six points, the diagnostic accuracy of the scale was 73.1%.
Torres-Quevedo
Rodrigo
R
Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Concepción, Chile.
Manterola
Carlos
C
Sanhueza
Antonio
A
Bustos
Luis
L
Pineda
Viviana
V
Vial
Manuel
M
D000328:Adult; D002677:Chile; D016145:Endoscopy, Digestive System; D004942:Esophagitis, Peptic / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D005764:Gastroesophageal Reflux / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013732:Test Anxiety Scale / Q000592:standards*