Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
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Review Meta Analysis
Test Characteristics of Ultrasound for the Diagnosis of Peritonsillar Abscess: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.
Distinguishing peritonsillar abscess (PTA) from peritonsillar cellulitis using clinical assessment is challenging as many features overlap for both conditions, and physical examination is only about 75% sensitive and 50% specific for diagnosing PTA. The primary objective of this systematic review was to determine the test characteristics of ultrasound for diagnosing PTA when compared to a reference standard of computed tomography or acquisition of pus via needle aspiration or incision and drainage. ⋯ Ultrasound demonstrates high sensitivity for ruling out PTA, but it only has moderate specificity for ruling in the diagnosis.
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Review Meta Analysis
Test Characteristics of Ultrasound for the Diagnosis of Peritonsillar Abscess: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.
Distinguishing peritonsillar abscess (PTA) from peritonsillar cellulitis using clinical assessment is challenging as many features overlap for both conditions, and physical examination is only about 75% sensitive and 50% specific for diagnosing PTA. The primary objective of this systematic review was to determine the test characteristics of ultrasound for diagnosing PTA when compared to a reference standard of computed tomography or acquisition of pus via needle aspiration or incision and drainage. ⋯ Ultrasound demonstrates high sensitivity for ruling out PTA, but it only has moderate specificity for ruling in the diagnosis.