In epidemiology, in tests of validity, labeling non cases or the absence of a characteristic incorrectly.
A person wrongly diagnosed as having a disease or condition when in fact he dose not. When assessing a medical screening or other diagnostic procedure it is important to know both how many false positives and false negatives the procedure gives in normal use.
A test result that wrongly indicates a person has the characteristics being tested for. If a child is given a screening test that indicates he has aids, when in fact he does not, the result is called a false positive.
Test or procedure result indicating a positive or abnormal result when, in fact, no abnormal condition is actually present. A specific test has a low false-positive rate. A nonspecific test has a high false-positive rate and should not be relied upon to suspect or diagnose an abnormality or disease. Some types of urine pregnancy tests are very nonspecific—any type of contaminant (such as dirt, blood, or vaginal secretions) may give a false-positive result when, in reality, the patient is not pregnant. A serum pregnancy test is both sensitive and specific.
A term used to describe an inaccurate positive laboratory test result.
A diagnostic test result indicating that the patient has the condition being tested for, when in fact the patient does not. A false positive could lead to unnecessary treatment and psychological trauma.
A false positive is a test result that erroneously implies the presence of a particular disease or condition. For instance, a false positive result in a mammography test might indicate the presence of breast cancer, but further tests do not confirm any disease.