in nuclear medicine, there are two methods of imaging, planar and tomography. single photon emission computerized tomography (spect) shows better image details and therefore is influenced more by image parameters such as resolution, uniformity, sensitivity, etc. manufacturers provide customers with data which are obtained by complicated and sometimes secret methods. marketing companies test and...

CONTEXT Specific regulation of laboratories performing molecular genetic tests may be needed to ensure standards and quality assurance (QA) and safeguard patient rights to informed consent and confidentiality. However, comprehensive analysis of current practices of such laboratories, important for assessing the need for regulation and its impact on access to testing, has not been conducted. O...

RATIONALE Because of increased levels of airborne particulate matter in Southwest Asia, deployed military personnel are at risk for developing acute and chronic lung diseases. Increased respiratory symptoms are reported, but limited data exist on reported lung diseases. OBJECTIVES To evaluate new respiratory complaints in military personnel returning from Southwest Asia to determine potential...

Triage in emergency response refers to determining the priority of victims based on their need for treatment and medical intervention. Today, triage is performed by the use of paper-based triage tags. Communication about patients' status is mainly carried out over radio or through handwritten notes. This practice makes it challenging for emergency personnel to keep an overview of the number, lo...

BACKGROUND Despite rapid task-shifting and scale-up of HIV testing services in high HIV prevalence countries, studies evaluating accuracy remain limited. This study aimed to assess overall accuracy level and factors associated with accuracy in HIV rapid testing in Zambia. METHODS Accuracy was investigated among rural and urban HIV testing sites participating in two annual national HIV profici...

Early in the history of software development, testing was confined to testing the finished code. However, as the practice of software development has evolved, there has been increasing interest in expanding the role of testing upwards in the SDLC stages. This paper presents a set of models for expanding testing throughout the SDLC. It includes comparisons of the models as well as personnel requ...