Department of ENT and Head Neck Surgery, University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire, Coventry, UK.
J Laryngol Otol. 2021 Mar;135(3):241-245. doi: 10.1017/S0022215121000657. Epub 2021 Mar 2.
Utilisation of the Head and Neck Cancer Risk Calculator version 2 has been recommended during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic for the assessment of head and neck cancer referrals. As limited data were available, this study was conducted to analyse the use of the Head and Neck Cancer Risk Calculator version 2 in clinical practice.
Patients undergoing telephone triage in a two-week wait referral clinic were included. Data were collected and analysed using appropriate methods.
Sixty-four patients in the study were risk-stratified into low-risk (51.6 per cent, 33 of 64), moderate-risk (14.1 per cent, 9 of 64) and high-risk (34.4 per cent, 22 of 64) groups. Of the patients, 53.1 per cent (34 of 64) avoided an urgent hospital visit, and 96.9 per cent (62 of 64) were cancer free, while 3.1 per cent (2 of 64) were found to have a head and neck malignancy. The sensitivity, specificity, negative predictive value and accuracy were 50.00 per cent, 66.13 per cent, 99.92 per cent and 66.11 per cent, respectively.
It is reasonable to use the calculator for triaging purposes, but it must always be accompanied by a meticulous clinical thought process.
在 2019 年冠状病毒病大流行期间，推荐使用头颈癌风险计算器第 2 版来评估头颈部癌症转诊。由于可用数据有限，因此进行了这项研究，以分析在临床实践中对头颈癌风险计算器第 2 版的使用情况。
纳入在两周等待转诊诊所接受电话分诊的患者。使用适当的方法收集和分析数据。
研究中有 64 名患者被风险分层为低危（51.6%，33/64）、中危（14.1%，9/64）和高危（34.4%，22/64）组。其中，53.1%（34/64）的患者避免了紧急医院就诊，96.9%（62/64）的患者无癌症，而 3.1%（2/64）的患者被发现患有头颈部恶性肿瘤。该计算器的敏感性、特异性、阴性预测值和准确性分别为 50.00%、66.13%、99.92%和 66.11%。
使用计算器进行分诊是合理的，但必须始终伴随细致的临床思维过程。
