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Sensitivity, specificity and what a test result is worth
Sensitivity, specificity and what a test result is worth: definitional pages — sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value, likelihood…
This launch guide maps the topic, the source base and the practical questions. Check the linked official authority before acting on a rule, deadline, price or safety requirement.
What this guide covers
Definitional pages — sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value, likelihood ratios, the ROC curve and where a cut-off is chosen, why moving that cut-off trades one kind of error for the other, indeterminate results and what repeating a test does — sit beside worked pages for the tests people actually meet: home pregnancy, rapid antigen, PSA, mammography, faecal immunochemical, D-dimer, ferritin for iron deficiency, and a smartwatch atrial-fibrillation alert.
Every section shows the filled-in 2x2 table with real published numbers, which is the thing nobody puts in Estonian, Finnish or Russian. Sixteen pages.
How to use it
Use Sensitivity, specificity and what a test result is worth as a structured learning path: begin with the vocabulary, follow the evidence map, and keep the uncertainty labels attached to claims as you compare sources.
The page keeps the main question, its evidence base and its limits together in one canonical place. That makes it useful as a quick orientation and avoids splitting a broad subject into shallow pages before each narrower answer has enough verified material of its own.
Search vocabulary in four languages
Terminology changes across borders. These are example phrases people use for the same subject in Estonian, Finnish, Russian and English; they are included as a practical vocabulary aid, not as hidden keywords.
| Language | Example phrase |
|---|---|
| Estonian | testi tundlikkus ja spetsiifilisus |
| Finnish | herkkyys ja spesifisyys selitys |
| Russian | чувствительность и специфичность теста простыми словами |
| English | sensitivity vs specificity explained |
Evidence and provenance
The evidence map below records the primary, official or openly licensed material chosen for this guide. It is deliberately visible so a reader can tell the difference between a rule published by an authority, a measured dataset and an editorial explanation.
Source: own writing, tables computed; test performance from named Cochrane diagnostic-accuracy reviews and primary studies cited per page; STARD 2015 for the reporting frame. · checked 2026-09-09
Source names are preserved even where an authority changes its web address. No figure is added to this launch page unless it is already present in the cited source description or can be computed from a named dataset.
Scope and boundaries
This guide owns the explanatory layer for the topic. Personal decisions, diagnoses, legal determinations and live availability remain with the relevant professional or official service.
Connected TempoLife guides
The following paths are the intentional hand-offs named in the brief. They keep adjacent subjects separate while making the next useful reference easy to find.
Screening
Continue to the related TempoLife reference.
Blood Test
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Checkup
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Why it belongs on TempoLife
/screening, /blood-test, /checkup.
Frequently asked questions
What does this guide cover?
Definitional pages — sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value, likelihood ratios, the ROC curve and where a cut-off is chosen, why moving that cut-off trades one kind of error for the other, indeterminate results and what repeating a test does — sit beside worked pages for the tests people actually meet: home pregnancy, rapid antigen, PSA, mammography, faecal immunochemical, D-dimer, ferritin for iron deficiency, and a smartwatch atrial-fibrillation alert. Every section shows the filled-in…
What evidence does it use?
own writing, tables computed; test performance from named Cochrane diagnostic-accuracy reviews and primary studies cited per page; STARD 2015 for the reporting frame.
Where does this guide stop?
It explains the topic and points to primary or official sources. It does not replace a qualified professional, an official decision, or advice based on your own circumstances.
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