Which statement describes a false positive?

Which statement describes a false positive?

• A. Condition present and test negative.
• B. Condition present and test positive.
• C. Condition absent and test positive.
• D. Condition absent and test negative.

Answer: (C)

A false positive is a test result that indicates the condition is present when it is actually not. The statement describing the condition being absent while the test result is positive fits this perfectly. In contrast, a true positive would mean the condition is present and the test is positive, a true negative would be absent with a negative result, and a false negative would be present with a negative result. So the described scenario is the one that represents a false positive, highlighting why the test misclassifies someone who doesn’t have the condition as being positive. This distinction also explains why maintaining good specificity is important to limit false positives and unnecessary downstream actions.

A false positive is a test result that indicates the condition is present when it is actually not. The statement describing the condition being absent while the test result is positive fits this perfectly. In contrast, a true positive would mean the condition is present and the test is positive, a true negative would be absent with a negative result, and a false negative would be present with a negative result. So the described scenario is the one that represents a false positive, highlighting why the test misclassifies someone who doesn’t have the condition as being positive. This distinction also explains why maintaining good specificity is important to limit false positives and unnecessary downstream actions.