Interpreting the Medical Literature

Interpreting the Medical Literature 4th edition Preface 1. Tasting an Article Reasons to Read The Bones of an Article Approaching an Article 2. Study Design: General Considerations Descriptive Studies Explanatory Studies More Confusing Terminology Summary 3. Study Design: The Case-Control Approach Advantages of the Case-Control Design Problems of Case-Control Designs Summary 4. Study Design: The Cross-Sectional and Follow-up Approaches Cross-Sectional Designs Follow-up Studies Summary 5. Study Design: The Experimental Approach Enrollment: Who Gets In Allocation: Sorting Subjects & Controls Follow-Up Analysis Summary 6. Study Design: Variations Real-World Considerations Practical Constraints Ethical Concerns Summary 7. Making Measurements Reliability & Validity Variability of the Unsystematic Sort Systematic Error Reducing Measurement Error Summary 8. Analysis: Statistical Significance Inference Sampling Variability The Null Hypothesis & Statistical Significance Some Problems of Statistical Significance Beta Errors & Statistical Power Confidence Intervals Summary 9. Analysis: Some Statistical Tests Tests for Categorical Data Tests for Continuous Data Correlation Regression Summary 10. Interpretation: Sensitivity, Specificity, and Predictive Value Prevalence Making Choices Likelihood Ratios ROC Curves Modeling Spectrum Standards Summary 11. Interpretation: Risk Expressing Statements of Risk Risk Differences Balancing Risks Costs & Benefits Summary 12. Interpretation: Causes Confounding Dealing with Confounding Making Associations into Causes Summary 13. Case Series, Editorials, and Reviews Case Series Editorials & Letters to the Editor Reviews Summary 14.