Figure 5

Comparison of simple and complex binary diagnostic tests with respect to the net benefit. At a low threshold probability p _t , the difference between the two tests appears to be much higher with respect to the net benefit for the untreated (b) than with respect to the net benefit for the treated (a). The converse is true at a high probability threshold. A complete picture of the situation is conveyed using the overall net benefit (c). In this example, the simple test has 90% sensitivity and specificity and the complex test has 99% sensitivity and specificity in a context where the prevalence is 0.5.