observe:
declare @TestDate datetime;
select datediff(dd,getdate(),@TestDate)
select datediff(dd,@TestDate,getdate())
set @TestDate = '20130318';
select datediff(dd,getdate(),@TestDate)
select datediff(dd,@TestDate,getdate())
-----------
NULL
(1 row(s) affected)
-----------
NULL
(1 row(s) affected)
-----------
11
(1 row(s) affected)
-----------
-11
(1 row(s) affected)