Search Menu

Glossary

Selected words and phrases

virus – an infectious organism that can only reproduce inside the cell of another plant or animal.

HBV – hepatitis B, a virus that causes liver disease.

Hepatitis B.

thrombocytopenia – a low platelet count (platelets help stop bleeding by clotting blood).

genotype test – a test that looks at how the genetic structure of a sample of HIV and whether the virus has changed with drug resistant mutations.

sensitivity – when referring to the accuracy of a test result, sensitivity refers to the proportion of people with an illness or disease who have a positive test result.

If a test has low sensitivity, then false-negative results are the concern – where people have a condition but it is missed.

If a test has high sensitivity, then people are accurately diagnosed – and only a few people are missed.

For a serious condition, high sensitivity is essential to be able to identify people early.

Online calculator.

See specificity.

sensitivity – when referring to the activity of a drug, sensitive means that a drug still works. As resistance develops a drug becomes less sensitive.

A complete loss of sensitivity implies that a drug is no longer working.

It also means that your partner may benefit from counselling.