title: Bladder tumour antigen (BTA stat) test compared to the urine cytology in the diagnosis of bladder cancer: A meta-analysis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  We evaluate the diagnostic value of bladder tumour antigen (BTA stat) tests compared with urine cytology test in detecting bladder cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  We searched public databases including PubMed, MEDLINE Springer, Elsevier Science Direct, Cochrane Library and Google Scholar before December 2012. To collect relevant data of BTA stat tests and urine cytology tests in patients with bladder cancer, we studied meta-analyses of sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (LR), negative LR and diagnostic odds ratios (DOR) of BTA stat tests and cytology tests from published studies. We applied the software of Rev. Man 5.1 and Stata 11.0 to the meta-analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 13 separate studies consisting of 3462 patients with bladder cancer were considered in the meta-analysis. We found that the BTA stat test had a higher sensitivity than the urine cytology test (0.67, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.64 to 0.69 vs. 0.43, 95% CI 0.40 to 0.46), but the specificity, positive LR, negative LR, DOR, the area under the curve (AUC) and Q index of the BTA stat test were lower compared with the urine cytology test. The results of the Egger's linear regression test showed no publication bias (p > 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Specificity, positive LR, negative LR, DOR, the AUC and the Q index of the urine cytology test may be superior to the BTA stat test, but the BTA stat test has greater sensitivity than the urine cytology test.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Laboratory, Henan Province People's Hospital, Zhengzhou, Henan, China;
authors.forename: Aiye
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Foreign Affairs Division of Scientific Research, Henan Province People's Hospital, Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
authors.forename: Xiuhua
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Laboratory, Henan Province People's Hospital, Zhengzhou, Henan, China;
authors.forename: Lan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Laboratory, Henan Province People's Hospital, Zhengzhou, Henan, China;
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Laboratory, Henan Province People's Hospital, Zhengzhou, Henan, China;
authors.forename: Changyi
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Laboratory, Henan Province People's Hospital, Zhengzhou, Henan, China;
authors.forename: Zhen
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wan