αlpha Support

Overview

αlpha users are provided with the highest levels of support by phone, email or, if necessary and possible, remote computer access. This web site contains further assistance including detailed questions and answers on screening and advice on how to use αlpha.

If you have a query please check to see if it has been answered on this web site as it is updated regularly. If you are unable to find an answer please contact us either by email or by phone.

For advice on installing αlpha onto a new computer please refer to the supported platforms to ensure your hardware is supported. Additional software may be needed to access all the features in αlpha.

Questions & Answers

This section contains answers to frequently asked questions (FAQ's) about prenatnal screening and αlpha.

Spotlight

Guidance on terminology used in medical screening is given in the following article: Wald, N.J., 1994. Guidance on terminology. Journal of medical screening, 1(2), pp.139-139.

Other articles

• How can I check my false-positive rate and is it right?
• A diabetic woman has an AFP level of 2.3 MoM - why does αlpha say her AFP is raised, when my cut-off is 2.5 MoM?
• How does αlpha interpret nuchal translucency (NT) and first trimester serum markers in a twin pregnancy?
• Can a warning be given if the screening result appears to be heavily influenced by a single marker measurement?
• Why is the screening report positive when a previous pregnancy is affected with Down's syndrome or neural tube defects?
• Why is screening for neural tube defects not carried out at 14 weeks?
• What is the "scan update rule"?
• What is the best gestational age for first trimester tests?
• Can I specify which set of normal medians to use?
• What maternal age related risk equation does αlpha use?
• What does it mean when a MoM value falls outside the 95% confidence interval around 1.0 MoM?
• How does αlpha make adjustments for in-vitro fertilization pregnancies?
• Why is the screening result for neural tube defects based on the AFP MoM value and not on the risk estimate?
• Why does αlpha not draw attention to markers which are individually high or low?
• When should women who are diabetic be identified as such in αlpha ?
• I plan to change from RIA kits to a non-radioactive method. Do I need to change anything in alpha?
• How are detection and false-positive rates estimated?
• How do I estimate centile values?
• What is meant by capping a risk estimate?
• What are truncation limits?
• What are the ways of expressing risk?

How To's

Some questions are better answered by a guide so we have provided a series of guides on how αlpha works and changes are made within the program.

Spotlight

I want to analyse my screening data using Microsoft® Excel®. Can I transfer the data from αlpha into a spreadsheet?

αlpha provides two methods of extracting data from the database. The first is Data Transfer which provides a very quick and easy way to get access to the raw data. Secondly a facility called Analyze-it which exports data directly to a Microsoft® Excel® spreadsheet as well as other well known formats.

• How to check that my normal median values are accurate
• Adding additional markers
• Updating medians after a kit change

Supported Platforms

Please ensure all these specifications are met before installing αlpha. If you are unsure about meeting this specification please contact us.

References

αlpha is based on published scientific data and is regularly updated in the light of new scientific advances in screening and diagnosis.

Other help

If none of the above sections has solved your problem or answered your question please use the following details to contact us: