Review
Necessity and methodological progress on the establishment of continuous reference intervals for pediatric age-dependent indicators
Yan Ruohua, Peng Xiaoxia, Peng Yaguang, Li Kun, Ni Xin
Published 2023-08-19
Cite as Chin J Lab Med, 2023, 46(8): 872-878. DOI: 10.3760/cma.j.cn114452-20230524-00257
Abstract
Accurate and applicable reference intervals can provide important information for disease diagnosis, efficacy evaluation, and health monitoring. Age-dependent trends exist for many clinical laboratory indicators, and the interpretation of such indicators should consider the effect of age carefully. However, age-specific reference intervals have certain limitations in clinical application. Continuous reference intervals can not only help accurate interpretation of laboratory test results, but also provide a baseline value for dynamic monitoring of their changing trends. Based on the researches on pediatric reference intervals from our team, this paper introduces different algorithms for establishing continuous reference intervals, and their applicable conditions and implementation steps. The aim of this paper is to provide methodological guidance for the establishment of continuous reference intervals, so as to improve the quality of laboratory reports and the accuracy of clinical diagnosis in China.
Key words:
Child; Reference interval; Non-parametric method; Semi-parametric method
Contributor Information
Yan Ruohua
Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Evidence-based Medicine, Beijing Children′s Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children′s Health, Beijing 100045, China
Peng Xiaoxia
Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Evidence-based Medicine, Beijing Children′s Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children′s Health, Beijing 100045, China
Peng Yaguang
Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Evidence-based Medicine, Beijing Children′s Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children′s Health, Beijing 100045, China
Li Kun
Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Evidence-based Medicine, Beijing Children′s Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children′s Health, Beijing 100045, China
Ni Xin
Beijing Key Laboratory for Pediatric Diseases of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Beijing Children′s Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children Health, Beijing 100045, China
