Abstract:
:It is increasingly easy for the general public to access a wide range of laboratory tests. Tests can be ordered online with little or no input from a health professional. The complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) community promote and sell a wide range of tests, many of which are of dubious clinical significance. Many have little or no clinical utility and have been widely discredited, whilst others are established tests that are used for unvalidated purposes. They range from the highly complex, employing state of the art technology, e.g. heavy metal analysis using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry, to the rudimentary, e.g. live blood cell analysis. Results of 'CAM tests' are often accompanied by extensive clinical interpretations which may recommend, or be used to justify, unnecessary or harmful treatments. There are now a small number of laboratories across the globe that specialize in CAM testing. Some CAM laboratories operate completely outside of any accreditation programme whilst others are fully accredited to the standard of established clinical laboratories. In this review, we explore CAM testing in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia with a focus on the common tests on offer, how they are reported, the evidence base for their clinical application and the regulations governing their use. We will also review proposed changed to in-vitro diagnostic device regulations and how these might impact on CAM testing.
journal_name
Ann Clin Biochemjournal_title
Annals of clinical biochemistryauthors
Jones SL,Campbell B,Hart Tdoi
10.1177/0004563218824622subject
Has Abstractpub_date
2019-05-01 00:00:00pages
310-325issue
3eissn
0004-5632issn
1758-1001journal_volume
56pub_type
杂志文章,评审abstract::We present two cases of spuriously high cerebrospinal fluid glucose concentration with approximately normal blood glucose concentrations. The cause of these abnormal findings was the use of inappropriate collection tubes during the pre-analytical phase. Whilst no patient harm was identified following this error, signi...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/0004563214547284
更新日期:2015-01-01 00:00:00
abstract::Thyroglobulin (Tg) is a tumour marker for differentiated thyroid cancer. Interpretation requires a knowledge of the current thyrotropin (TSH) concentration as secretion is TSH-dependent. While a raised serum Tg may be indicative of residual or recurrent thyroid cancer, trauma to the thyroid (e.g. surgical, biopsy or d...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章,评审
doi:10.1258/acb.2011.011248
更新日期:2012-07-01 00:00:00
abstract:BACKGROUND:Emergency abdominal surgery carries considerable postoperative morbidity and mortality. Hypovolaemia is considered to be a cause of renal hypoperfusion, which is associated with a decreased clearance of serum urea and creatinine. This study examines whether the perioperative serum urea and creatinine concent...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1258/000456306777695717
更新日期:2006-07-01 00:00:00
abstract::Total serum cholesterol was measured in 1320 normal Saudi children aged 0-14 years. The result was 3.88 (0.83) mmol/L [mean (SD)] and there was no statistical difference between girls and boys. Results were lowest in the 0-4 year age group and highest in the 5-9 year age group. Percentile values were established for t...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/000456329403100407
更新日期:1994-07-01 00:00:00
abstract:BACKGROUND:It is now established that the bioactive lipid lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) contributes to cancer initiation, progression and metastasis, including those of prostate cancer. LPA is produced in the serum and plasma mainly by conversion from lysophospholipids through the action of lysophospholipase D (lysoPLD),...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1258/000456307782268147
更新日期:2007-11-01 00:00:00
abstract::In monocytes at the secretory (oestrogen-progesterone dominant) phase of the menstrual cycle, expression of c-fms and macrophage colony-stimulating factor (M-CSF) receptor and activity of tyrosine kinase (TK) were increased by oestradiol with or without progesterone. In vivo, oestrogen may induce expression of c-fms a...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/000456329503200408
更新日期:1995-07-01 00:00:00
abstract::Background Faecal occult blood testing is an important diagnostic tool for the detection of colorectal cancer. However, it has not been standardized due to the absence of suitable specimens for surveillance. Methods We developed a ready-to-use artificial stool made from rice flour. This new artificial stool homogeneou...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/0004563217732587
更新日期:2018-05-01 00:00:00
abstract::Guaiac-based faecal occult blood tests (gFOBT) are still used in asymptomatic population bowel screening programmes but are being replaced by faecal immunochemical tests (FIT) for haemoglobin. gFOBT have many well-documented disadvantages and there is little evidence for their use in assessment of the symptomatic. Man...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章,评审
doi:10.1258/acb.2012.012065
更新日期:2012-11-01 00:00:00
abstract:BACKGROUND:Angiogenesis is involved in the pathogenesis of diabetic retinopathy. Osteoprotegerin, a recently identified glycoprotein belonging to the tumour necrosis factor receptor superfamily, has been implicated to be correlated with angiogenesis. This study aims to determine whether serum and vitreous concentration...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/0004563214533669
更新日期:2015-03-01 00:00:00
abstract:BACKGROUND:Unnecessary blood tests are estimated to contribute to 25% of wastage in the National Health Service. The aim of this study was to assess the financial implication of clinical need-focused blood tests guided by a senior clinician in a district general hospital. METHODS:We conducted an observational longitud...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/0004563215617782
更新日期:2016-09-01 00:00:00
abstract::The aim of this study was to assess the performance of a commercially available procedure for detecting anti-Sjögren's syndrome A (anti-SSA) and anti-Sjögren's syndrome B (anti-SSB) antibodies by immunoblotting (IB) and compare it with double immunodiffusion (DID). We also studied the clinical significance of these pr...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/000456329903600310
更新日期:1999-05-01 00:00:00
abstract:BACKGROUND:Neutrophilic polymorphonuclear leukocytes play a crucial role in the host defence against bacterial and fungal infections. They participate in the inflammatory response through the liberation of peptides and enzymes like myeloperoxidase (MPO). Therefore, MPO has a potential as a marker enzyme for the diagnos...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1258/acb.2011.010249
更新日期:2013-05-01 00:00:00
abstract:BACKGROUND:Patient-based real-time quality control (PBRTQC) techniques have been described in clinical chemistry for over 50 years. PBRTQC has a number of advantages over traditional quality control including commutability, cost and the opportunity for real-time monitoring. However, there are few systematic investigati...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/0004563220902174
更新日期:2020-05-01 00:00:00
abstract::A simple procedure is described for the preparation of a stable precision quality control material for use in the measurement of level of ionised calcium in serum at or near the reference range. Repeat analyses on a Nova 2 ionised calcium analyser of serum pools stored at different temperatures over a period of three ...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/000456328101800211
更新日期:1981-03-01 00:00:00
abstract::Background Red blood cell distribution width (RDW) and neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) have been reported to be associated with outcomes of acute cerebral infarction. However, their prognostic value in patients with subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) remains largely unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate t...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/0004563216686623
更新日期:2017-11-01 00:00:00
abstract::Further data suggesting that assessment of atypicality may be a valuable addition to Down's syndrome screening is presented, based on results from 1521 unaffected pregnancies and 190 chromosomally abnormal pregnancies. For a 1% increase in false positive rates (over the Down's screening-related false positives), it is...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/000456329703400314
更新日期:1997-05-01 00:00:00
abstract:BACKGROUND:Neuroendocrine tumours are slow growing tumours known to secrete a variety of vasoactive peptides which give rise to symptoms of the carcinoid syndrome. The diagnosis and monitoring of patients with neuroendocrine tumours is undertaken in many centres using 24 h urinary measurement of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic a...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/0004563215613109
更新日期:2016-09-01 00:00:00
abstract:BACKGROUND:Patients with Crigler-Najjar syndrome, type I (CNS-I) have an inherited absence of hepatocellular bilirubin uridine diphosphate-glucuronosyltransferase activity, which results in severe unconjugated hyperbilirubinaemia, often causing kernicterus and death in infancy or childhood. METHODS:Our patient is a 19...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1258/000456303322326443
更新日期:2003-09-01 00:00:00
abstract::Insulin resistance is a common condition, recognized to be a central feature of the metabolic syndrome, and strongly associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes. The quantitative assessment of insulin sensitivity is not used for routine clinical purposes, but the emerging importance of ins...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章,评审
doi:10.1258/000456307780945778
更新日期:2007-07-01 00:00:00
abstract::The System 1 produced results for glucose and urea which were precise and accurate. It proved suitable as a general laboratory instrument as it samples 28 mul of specimen, is able to calibrate itself, produces results in three minutes, and has the capacity to analyse 56 samples an hour. ...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/000456327701400179
更新日期:1977-09-01 00:00:00
abstract:BACKGROUND:Placental growth factor (PlGF) and soluble-fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 (sFlt-1) are biomarkers of placental function used to aid the diagnosis and prediction of pregnancy complications. This work verified the analytical performance of both biomarkers and provides preliminary diagnostic accuracy data to identi...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/0004563220911993
更新日期:2020-05-01 00:00:00
abstract:BACKGROUND:It has been suggested that for the accurate measurement of calcium in urine, samples must be collected into bottles containing acid. Acidification poses risks to both patients and laboratory staff. Here we reappraise whether acidification is a preanalytical necessity. METHODS:Twenty-four-hour urine samples ...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1258/acb.2009.009027
更新日期:2009-11-01 00:00:00
abstract::Autosomal dominant hypercholesterolaemia is genetically heterogeneous, but most commonly (approximately 93%) caused by mutations in low-density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR), where the disease is known as familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH), or apolipoprotein B-100 (APOB) (approximately 5.5%), where the disease is known...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1258/acb.2010.010089
更新日期:2010-09-01 00:00:00
abstract::The presence of antibodies in some patients' serum has long been known to be a potential source of interference in immunoassays, as shown by numerous case reports. These often appear after the introduction of a new analyte (e.g. troponin) and then decrease in number as the topic becomes exhausted. This highlights the ...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章,评审
doi:10.1258/000456302760042128
更新日期:2002-07-01 00:00:00
abstract::We evaluated a novel assay for the measurement of 1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25 (OH)2D). Immunoextraction of 1,25(OH)2D is performed using a mini column containing a solid-phase monoclonal antibody followed by radioimmunoassay (RIA) using an 125I-labelled 1,25(OH)2D derivative tracer and Sac-cell separation. The mean ...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 临床试验,杂志文章
doi:10.1177/000456329703400606
更新日期:1997-11-01 00:00:00
abstract:BACKGROUND:Various conjugated cholesterol metabolites are excreted in urine of the patients with metabolic abnormalities and hepatobiliary diseases. We aimed to examine the usefulness of precursor ion scan and neutral loss scan for the characterization of conjugated cholesterol metabolites in urine. METHODS:A mixture ...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/0004563214568871
更新日期:2015-09-01 00:00:00
abstract::Some inherited metabolic disorders (IMDs) can cause significant complications during pregnancy, affecting the mother and/or the fetus. Although it appears that only a minority of IMDs have these effects, experience is still being acquired. For some disorders, patients will not have reached child-bearing age. Pregnanci...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章,评审
doi:10.1258/000456302320314458
更新日期:2002-09-01 00:00:00
abstract:BACKGROUND:With the recent outbreak in West Africa, hospitals worldwide have been developing protocols for suspect of cases of Ebola virus disease. Patients with Ebola virus disease present with a severe gastroenteritis leading to dehydration and electrolyte abnormalities and as such, routine chemistry analysis is esse...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/0004563215581651
更新日期:2016-03-01 00:00:00
abstract::Salivary theophylline concentrations in neonates were measured by a homogeneous enzyme immunoassay and compared with serum concentrations. Free serum theophylline concentrations were also compared with salivary concentrations and the values obtained were almost identical. Results using the immunoassay agreed well with...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章
doi:10.1177/000456329403100311
更新日期:1994-05-01 00:00:00
abstract::Inherited metabolic disorders account for a small but significant number of sudden unexplained deaths in neonates, infants and occasionally older children. In particular, inherited disorders of fatty acid oxidation may closely mimic sudden infant death syndrome. Post-mortem investigations offer the final opportunity t...
journal_title:Annals of clinical biochemistry
pub_type: 杂志文章,评审
doi:10.1258/0004563041201473
更新日期:2004-07-01 00:00:00