If you read (or produce) scientific literature, you are hopefully aware of and use some system to appreciate how good a particular type of study […]
Regression to the Mean
In life, we don’t tend to notice the mediocre or the average; rather, we notice extremes. We never think about the weather on an average […]
Risk, or The Game of Life?
The ideal physician is not risk-averse but rather is a risk-mitigator. Risk is inescapable. We have to be able to understand risks in real terms […]
Measuring How Well A Test Works, or How To Find a Hipster
Imagine we design a test to detect a disease. In the graph below are 500 patients. Some patients have a positive test result and also have […]
Primer: How To Systematically Read A Scientific Paper
The ability to read scientific literature critically is one of the foundational skills of physicians. The most common way (and perhaps the most wrong way) that […]
How Do I Diagnose Ruptured Membranes? Bayesian Statistics at its Best
The diagnosis of ruptured membranes in pregnancy is clinically very important. Decisions about delivering a pregnancy, hospitalization, and even termination of pregnancies, often depend on […]
Odds Ratios Versus Relative Risk
Many great things have been written about the difference between Odds Ratios (OR) and Relative Risks (RR). Every medical student at some point has been taught […]
Absolute Risk Versus Relative Risk: A Clinical Example
Risk distortion pervades our daily life. Whether we do or don’t do things, as the case may be, is affected by our perception of the […]