false pos·i·tive

(fawls poz'i-tiv),

1. A test result that erroneously assigns a patient to a specific diagnostic or reference group, due particularly to insufficiently exact methods of testing.

2. A patient whose test results include that person in a particular diagnostic group to which the person may not truly belong.

3. Term commonly used to denote a false-positive result.

Farlex Partner Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012

false positive

A test result that is false-positive.

false positive

A term of art referring to a person with a positive test result, who does not have a target condition.

false positive

Lab medicine A test result from a Pt who does not have a particular disease, which is positive or detects an analyte that is usually normal. See Four cell diagnostic matrix, Cf False negative.

false pos·i·tive

(fawls poz'i-tiv)

1. A test result that erroneously assigns a person to a specific diagnostic or reference group.

2. A person included by erroneous test results in a particular diagnostic group.

3. A false-positive test result.

Medical Dictionary for the Health Professions and Nursing © Farlex 2012

False positive

Test results showing a problem when one does not exist.

Mentioned in: Stress Test

specificity

The extent to which a test gives results that are free from false positives (i.e. people found to have the defect when they are actually free of it). The fewer the number of false positives, the greater is the specificity of the test. It is usually presented as the percentage of people truly identified as not defectives, or normal, referred to as true negatives, D (or correct reject), divided by the total number of not defectives or normal people tested. The total number includes all the true negatives, D, plus the false positives, B (or false alarm). Hence

See sensitivity.

false pos·i·tive

(fawls poz'i-tiv)

1. A test result that erroneously assigns a patient to a specific diagnostic or reference group, due particularly to insufficiently exact methods of testing.

2. A patient whose test results include that person in a particular diagnostic group to which the person may not truly belong.

3. Term commonly used to denote a false-positive reaction (q.v.).

Medical Dictionary for the Dental Professions © Farlex 2012

Mentioned in

References in periodicals archive

This is of concern as more frequent screening results in higher cumulative false positive findings, (26) which in turn increases the risk of invasive procedures and, based on our study and others, (6) lowers screening retention.

The impact of false positive breast cancer screening mammograms on screening retention: A retrospective population cohort study in Alberta, Canada

Ideally for a good diagnostic test, overall accuracy should be 1 (or 100%) and it is possible only when false negative and false positive are zero.

Evaluation and application of diagnostic accuracy in clinical decision-making

[TP = True Positive, FP = False Positive, TN =True Negative, FN =False Negative] From the above table following inference was drawn.

Evaluation of first trimester contingent test for Down's syndrome screening

That means that in the results of 10,000 tests, there would be not 1 (as before) but 100 true positives to go with the 10 false positives we established above (1 out of 1,000).

Understand probability to make smarter health choices

However, a high false positive rate adds considerable additional cost and time.

A comparison of four commercial chromogenic media and blood agar for the isolation and preliminary identification of Streptococcus agalactiae from vaginal swabs

EastNets will discuss how financial institutions can optimize the use of available False Positive Reduction mechanisms and regularly tune their AML systems during a special Open Theatre presentation titled 'False Positive Reduction Mechanisms: Put an end to the Nightmare.' Nasser J.

EastNets mechanisms for better 'False Positive' rates

Part 1: To calculate the false positive referral rates to optometrist-led Ml clinics and the adherence of optometrist-led Ml clinics to NDESP Quality Assurance Standards regarding waiting times.

Optometrist-led diabetic clinics audited: in the fourth article of OT's new audit series, specialist optometrist Sarah Farrell explores the efficiency and safety of diabetic maculopathy clinics in Bedfordshire

BluePrint Data's "Zero False Positive Guarantee" program will credit new customers, who sign up under this program through September 30, 2012 a credit of $500 for each separate occurrence where a customer's end user is disallowed access to a website because BluePrint Data has incorrectly categorized it[1].

BluePrint Data to Extend Its Zero False Positive Internet Filter Guarantee Promotion Until October 2012

When a case becomes a false positive or false negative, a forecasting error has been made, and there are costs associated with each.

Balancing the costs of forecasting errors in parole decisions

In comparing to the IDEXX Combo SNAP test for FIV testing, the Anigen assay had one false positive result; the SNAP test had no false positive results.

New test for FeLV and FIV

For example, the charge of "false positive" results was misused for decades by the tobacco industry to discredit the overwhelming epidemiologic evidence linking active and passive smoking with cancer (United States of America et al.

Epidemiology, public health, and the rhetoric of false positives

In the first 7 months after oral fluid testing was introduced, 35 (0.16%) of 21,722 tests were false positive by Western blot, consistent with the 99.8% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 99.6%-99.9%) specificity claim by the manufacturer in the product package insert (1).

False-positive oral fluid rapid HIV tests--New York City, 2005-2008