Rapid diagnosis of respiratory virus infections contributes to patient care. This systematic review evaluates the diagnostic accuracy of rapid tests for the detection of respiratory viruses. We searched Medline and EMBASE for studies evaluating these tests against polymerase chain reaction as the reference standard. Of 179 studies included, 134 evaluated rapid tests for influenza viruses, 32 for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and 13 for other respiratory viruses. We used the bivariate random effects model for quantitative meta-analysis of the results. Most tests detected only influenza viruses or RSV. Summary sensitivity and specificity estimates of tests for influenza were 61.1% and 98.9%. For RSV, summary sensitivity was 75.3%, and specificity, 98.7%. We assessed the quality of studies using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies (QUADAS-2) checklist. Because of incomplete reporting, the risk of bias was often unclear. Despite their intended use at the point of care, 26.3% of tests were evaluated in a laboratory setting. Although newly developed tests seem more sensitive, high-quality evaluations of these tests are lacking.

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ObjectiveTo prospectively determine the potential of diffusion MRI (dMRI) of the cervical spinal cord and the corticospinal tracts in brain as surrogate outcome measure for progression of myelopathy in men with adrenoleukodystrophy, as better outcome measures to quantify progression of myelopathy would enable clinical trials with fewer patients and shorter follow-up.MethodsClinical assessment of myelopathy included Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS), Severity Scoring System for Progressive Myelopathy (SSPROM), Timed Up-and-Go, and 6-Minute Walk Test. Applied dMRI metrics included fractional anisotropy, mean diffusivity, axial diffusivity, and radial diffusivity.ResultsData were available for 33 controls and 52 patients. First, cross-sectionally, differences between groups (controls vs patients; controls vs asymptomatic patients vs symptomatic patients) were statistically significant for fractional anisotropy, mean diffusivity, and radial diffusivity in spinal cord and brain corticospinal tracts (effect size 0.31–0.68). Correlations between dMRI metrics and clinical measures were moderate to strong (correlation coefficient 0.35–0.60). Second, longitudinally (n = 36), change on clinical measures was significant after 2-year follow-up for EDSS, SSPROM, and Timed Up-and-Go (p ≤ 0.021, effect size ≤0.14). Change on brain fractional anisotropy and radial diffusivity was slightly larger (p ≤ 0.002, effect sizes 0.16–0.28). In addition, a statistically significant change was detectable in asymptomatic patients using brain dMRI and not using the clinical measures. Change on clinical measures did not correlate to change on dMRI metrics.ConclusionAlthough effect sizes were small, our prospective data illustrate the potential of dMRI as surrogate outcome measure for progression of myelopathy in men with adrenoleukodystrophy.