Croatian Medical Journal 

About: Croatian Medical Journal is an academic journal published by Medicinska naklada, Zagreb. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Population & Health care. It has an ISSN identifier of 0353-9504. It is also open access. Over the lifetime, 2334 publications have been published receiving 41680 citations. The journal is also known as: Cmj.hr & CMJ.

Predictive value of assessment of general movements for neurological development of high-risk preterm infants: comparative study.

Abstract: AIM To assess the predictive value of normal, abnormal, or absent general movements in high-risk preterm infants for the later neurological development. METHODS The study involved 120 high-risk preterm infants (gestational age, < or =37 weeks) having at least three or more antenatal, perinatal, or neonatal risk factors for impaired neurological development, and 112 age-matched controls. The method of general movements of fidgety character assessment was compared with classical neurological examinations performed longitudinally until the corrected age of two years. The age-adequate neurological examinations based on the criteria by Amiel-Tison and Grenier and Illingworth were used. Specialists in clinical psychology also monitored the child's development. The results of specialists' examinations were taken into account. RESULTS Out of 83 high-risk preterm infants with normal fidgety movements, 81 (97%) had a normal neurological outcome. Abnormal or absent fidgety movements were followed by abnormal neurological outcome in 30 (81%) out of 37 infants. Cerebral palsy was diagnosed in 13 children, mental retardation in one, whereas 16 children had both cerebral palsy and mental retardation. The validity of the general movement assessment was 92%, sensitivity 94%, specificity 92%, positive predictive value 81%, and negative predictive value 98%. These values were better than those of the classical neurologic examination (60%, 97%, 43%, 44%, and 97%, respectively). CONCLUSION The method of general movement assessment had significantly better validity, sensitivity, specificity, positive, and negative predictive value than classical neurological examination of high-risk preterm infants.

Diagnosis of Brucellosis in Livestock and Wildlife

Abstract: Aim To describe and discuss the merits of various direct and indirect methods applied in vitro (mainly on blood or milk) or in vivo (allergic test) for the diagnosis of brucellosis in animals. Methods The recent literature on brucellosis diagnostic tests was reviewed. These diagnostic tests are applied with different goals, such as national screening, confirmatory diagnosis, certification, and international trade. The valida tion of such diagnostic tests is still an issue, particularly in wildlife. The choice of the testing strategy depends on the prevailing brucellosis epidemiological situation and the

Towards complete and accurate reporting of studies of diagnostic accuracy: the STARD initiative. The Standards for Reporting of Diagnostic Accuracy Group.

Abstract: Objective To improve the accuracy and completeness of reporting of studies of diagnostic accuracy in order to allow readers to assess the potential for bias in a study and to evaluate the generalizability of its results. Methods The Standards for Reporting of Diagnostic Accuracy (STARD) steering committee searched the literature to identify publications on the appropriate conduct and reporting of diagnostic studies and extracted potential items into an extensive list. Researchers, editors, and members of professional organizations shortened this list during a 2-day consensus meeting with the goal of developing a checklist and a generic flow diagram for studies of diagnostic accuracy. Results The search for published guidelines about diagnostic research yielded 33 previously published checklists, from which we extracted a list of 75 potential items. At the consensus meeting, participants shortened the list to a 25-item checklist, by using evidence whenever available. A prototype of a flow diagram provides information about the method of recruitment of patients, the order of test execution and the numbers of patients undergoing the test under evaluation, the reference standard, or both. Conclusions Evaluation of research depends on complete and accurate reporting. If medical journals adopt the checklist and the flow diagram, the quality of reporting of studies of diagnostic accuracy should improve to the advantage of clinicians, researchers, reviewers, journals, and the public.

Application of low copy number DNA profiling.

Abstract: Low copy number (LCN) DNA profiling is a technique sensitive enough to analyze just a few cells. When this kind of analysis is carried out, special considerations are needed to interpret the results. In particular, it is important to consider the implications of allele dropout and the possibility of contamination from a laboratory source. A rationale for interpreting LCN DNA is described.