Predictive clinical and hematological factors in the differential diagnosis between malignancy and arthritis in children: a case-control study

Aim To identify the predictive factors for malignancies in children presenting with musculoskeletal pain, and ultimately diagnosed to have JRA or malignancy. Patients and methods: it is a retrospective case-control chart review study examining data from the initial visit of all the patients referred to our Department for musculoskeletal pain during the period January 2001– December 2010 and then diagnosed with a tumour or with JRA. The value of given diagnostic test as a predictive factor for neoplasia in comparison to JRA, were assessed by calculating its sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value.