Encyclopaedic Companion to Medical Statistics

Holistic approach to understanding medical statistics This hands-on guide is much more than a basic medical statistics introduction. It equips you with the statistical tools required for evidence-based clinical research. Each chapter provides a clear step-by-step guide to each statistical test with practical instructions on how to generate and interpret the numbers, and present the results as scientific tables or graphs. Showing you how to: analyse data with the help of data set examples (Click here to download datasets) select the correct statistics and report results for publication or presentation understand and critically appraise results reported in the literature Each statistical test is linked to the research question and the type of study design used. There are also checklists for critically appraising the literature and web links to useful internet sites. Clear and concise explanations, combined with plenty of examples and tabulated explanations are based on the authors’ popular medical statistics courses. Critical appraisal guidelines at the end of each chapter help the reader evaluate the statistical data in their particular contexts.

The 5th edition of this popular introduction to statistics for the medical and health sciences has undergone a significant revision, with several new chapters added and examples refreshed throughout the book. Yet it retains its central philosophy to explain medical statistics with as little technical detail as possible, making it accessible to a wide audience.  Helpful multi-choice exercises are included at the end of each chapter, with answers provided at the end of the book. Each analysis technique is carefully explained and the mathematics kept to minimum. Written in a style suitable for statisticians and clinicians alike, this edition features many real and original examples, taken from the authors' combined many years' experience of designing and analysing clinical trials and teaching statistics. Students of the health sciences, such as medicine, nursing, dentistry, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, and radiography should find the book useful, with examples relevant to their disciplines. The aim of training courses in medical statistics pertinent to these areas is not to turn the students into medical statisticians but rather to help them interpret the published scientific literature and appreciate how to design studies and analyse data arising from their own projects. However, the reader who is about to design their own study and collect, analyse and report on their own data will benefit from a clearly written book on the subject which provides practical guidance to such issues. The practical guidance provided by this book will be of use to professionals working in and/or managing clinical trials, in academic, public health, government and industry settings, particularly medical statisticians, clinicians, trial co-ordinators. Its practical approach will appeal to applied statisticians and biomedical researchers, in particular those in the biopharmaceutical industry, medical and public health organisations.

Medical Statistics provides the necessary statistical tools to enable researchers to undertake and understand evidence-based clinical research. It is a practical guide to conducting statistical research and interpreting statistics in the context of how the participants were recruited, how the study was designed, what types of variables were used, what effect size was found, and what the P values mean. It guides researchers through the process of selecting the correct statistics and show how to best report results for presentation and publication. Clear and concise explanations, combined with plenty of examples and tabulated explanations are based on the authors’ popular medical statistics courses. The table of contents is divided into sections according to whether data are continuous or categorical in nature as this distinction is fundamental to selecting the correct statistics. Each chapter provides a clear step-by-step guide to each statistical test with practical instructions on how to generate and interpret the numbers, and present the results as scientific tables or graphs. The chapters conclude with critical appraisal guidelines to help researchers review the reporting of results from each type of statistical test. This new edition includes a new chapter on repeated measures and mixed models and a helpful glossary of terms provides an easy reference that applies to all chapters.

Blackwell Publishing is delighted to announce that this book has been Highly Commended in the 2004 BMA Medical Book Competition. Here is the judges' summary of this book: «This is a technical book on a technical subject but presented in a delightful way. There are many books on statistics for doctors but there are few that are excellent and this is certainly one of them. Statistics is not an easy subject to teach or write about. The authors have succeeded in producing a book that is as good as it can get. For the keen student who does not want a book for mathematicians, this is an excellent first book on medical statistics.» Essential Medical Statistics is a classic amongst medical statisticians. An introductory textbook, it presents statistics with a clarity and logic that demystifies the subject, while providing a comprehensive coverage of advanced as well as basic methods. The second edition of Essential Medical Statistics has been comprehensively revised and updated to include modern statistical methods and modern approaches to statistical analysis, while retaining the approachable and non-mathematical style of the first edition. The book now includes full coverage of the most commonly used regression models, multiple linear regression, logistic regression, Poisson regression and Cox regression, as well as a chapter on general issues in regression modelling. In addition, new chapters introduce more advanced topics such as meta-analysis, likelihood, bootstrapping and robust standard errors, and analysis of clustered data. Aimed at students of medical statistics, medical researchers, public health practitioners and practising clinicians using statistics in their daily work, the book is designed as both a teaching and a reference text. The format of the book is clear with highlighted formulae and worked examples, so that all concepts are presented in a simple, practical and easy-to-understand way. The second edition enhances the emphasis on choice of appropriate methods with new chapters on strategies for analysis and measures of association and impact. Essential Medical Statistics is supported by a web site at www.blackwellpublishing.com/essentialmedstats. This useful online resource provides statistical datasets to download, as well as sample chapters and future updates.

An accessible and engaging introduction to the study of probability and statistics Utilizing entertaining real-world examples, A Probability and Statistics Companion provides aunique, interesting, and accessible introduction to probability and statistics. This one-of-a-kind book delves into practical topics that are crucial in the analysis of sample surveys and experimentation. This handy book contains introductory explanations of the major topics in probability and statistics, including hypothesis testing and regression, while also delving into more advanced topics such as the analysis of sample surveys, analysis of experimental data, and statistical process control. The book recognizes that there are many sampling techniques that can actually improve on simple random sampling, and in addition, an introduction to the design of experiments is provided to reflect recent advances in conducting scientific experiments. This blend of coverage results in the development of a deeper understanding and solid foundation for the study of probability and statistics. Additional topical coverage includes: Probability and sample spaces Choosing the best candidate Acceptance sampling Conditional probability Random variables and discrete probability distributions Waiting time problems Continuous probability distributions Statistical inference Nonparametric methods Least squares and medians Recursions and probability Each chapter contains exercises and explorations for readers who wish to conduct independent projects or investigations. The discussion of most methods is complemented with applications to engaging, real-world scenarios such as winning speeds at the Indianapolis 500 and predicting winners of the World Series. In addition, the book enhances the visual nature of the subject with numerous multidimensional graphical representations of the presented examples. A Probability and Statistics Companion is an excellent book for introductory probability and statistics courses at the undergraduate level. It is also a valuable reference for professionals who use statistical concepts to make informed decisions in their day-to-day work.

Medical Statistics at a Glance is a concise and accessible introduction and revision aid for this complex subject. The self-contained chapters explain the underlying concepts of medical statistics and provide a guide to the most commonly used statistical procedures. This new edition of Medical Statistics at a Glance: Presents key facts accompanied by clear and informative tables and diagrams Focuses on illustrative examples which show statistics in action, with an emphasis on the interpretation of computer data analysis rather than complex hand calculations Includes extensive cross-referencing, a comprehensive glossary of terms and flow-charts to make it easier to choose appropriate tests Now provides the learning objectives for each chapter Includes a new chapter on Developing Prognostic Scores Includes new or expanded material on study management, multi-centre studies, sequential trials, bias and different methods to remove confounding in observational studies, multiple comparisons, ROC curves and checking assumptions in a logistic regression analysis The companion website at www.medstatsaag.com contains supplementary material including an extensive reference list and multiple choice questions (MCQs) with interactive answers for self-assessment. Medical Statistics at a Glance will appeal to all medical students, junior doctors and researchers in biomedical and pharmaceutical disciplines. Reviews of the previous editions «The more familiar I have become with this book, the more I appreciate the clear presentation and unthreatening prose. It is now a valuable companion to my formal statistics course.» –International Journal of Epidemiology «I heartily recommend it, especially to first years, but it's equally appropriate for an intercalated BSc or Postgraduate research. If statistics give you headaches – buy it. If statistics are all you think about – buy it.» –GKT Gazette «…I unreservedly recommend this book to all medical students, especially those that dislike reading reams of text. This is one book that will not sit on your shelf collecting dust once you have graduated and will also function as a reference book.» –4th Year Medical Student, Barts and the London Chronicle, Spring 2003

This long awaited second edition of this bestseller continues to provide a comprehensive, user friendly, down-to-earth guide to elementary statistics. The book presents a detailed account of the most important procedures for the analysis of data, from the calculation of simple proportions, to a variety of statistical tests, and the use of regression models for modeling of clinical outcomes. The level of mathematics is kept to a minimum to make the material easily accessible to the novice, and a multitude of illustrative cases are included in every chapter, drawn from the current research literature. The new edition has been completely revised and updated and includes new chapters on basic quantitative methods, measuring survival, measurement scales, diagnostic testing, bayesian methods, meta-analysis and systematic reviews. «… After years of trying and failing, this is the only book on statistics that i have managed to read and understand» – Naveed Kirmani, Surgical Registrar, South London Healthcare HHS Trust, UK

An accessible text that explains fundamental concepts in business statistics that are often obscured by formulae and mathematical notation A Guide to Business Statistics offers a practical approach to statistics that covers the fundamental concepts in business and economics. The book maintains the level of rigor of a more conventional textbook in business statistics but uses a more stream­lined and intuitive approach. In short, A Guide to Business Statistics provides clarity to the typical statistics textbook cluttered with notation and formulae. The author—an expert in the field—offers concise and straightforward explanations to the core principles and techniques in business statistics. The concepts are intro­duced through examples, and the text is designed to be accessible to readers with a variety of backgrounds. To enhance learning, most of the mathematical formulae and notation appears in technical appendices at the end of each chapter. This important resource: • Offers a comprehensive guide to understanding business statistics targeting business and economics students and professionals • Introduces the concepts and techniques through concise and intuitive examples • Focuses on understanding by moving distracting formulae and mathematical notation to appendices • Offers intuition, insights, humor, and practical advice for students of business statistics • Features coverage of sampling techniques, descriptive statistics, probability, sampling distributions, confidence intervals, hypothesis tests, and regression Written for undergraduate business students, business and economics majors, teachers, and practitioners, A Guide to Business Statistics offers an accessible guide to the key concepts and fundamental principles in statistics. DAVID M. McEVOY, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the Economics Department at Appalachian State University in Boone NC. He has published over 20 peer-reviewed articles and is coeditor of two books. Dr. McEvoy is an award-winning educator who has taught undergraduate courses in business statistics for over 10 years. DAVID M. McEVOY, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the Economics Department at Appalachian State University in Boone NC. He has published over 20 peer-reviewed articles and is coeditor of two books. Dr. McEvoy is an award-winning educator who has taught undergraduate courses in business statistics for over 10 years.An accessible text that explains fundamental conceptsin business statistics that are often obscured by formulae and mathematical notationA Guide to Business Statistics offers a practical approach to statistics that covers the fundamental concepts in business and economics. The book maintains the level of rigor of a more conventional textbook in business statistics but uses a more streamlined and intuitive approach. In short, A Guide to Business Statistics provides clarity to the typical statistics textbook cluttered with notation and formulae.The author—an expert in the field—offers concise and straightforward explanations to the core principles and techniques in business statistics. The concepts are introduced through examples, and the text is designed to be accessible

Statistics is confusing, even for smart, technically competent people. And many students and professionals find that existing books and web resources don’t give them an intuitive understanding of confusing statistical concepts. That is why this book is needed. Some of the unique qualities of this book are: • Easy to Understand: Uses unique “graphics that teach” such as concept flow diagrams, compare-and-contrast tables, and even cartoons to enhance “rememberability.” • Easy to Use: Alphabetically arranged, like a mini-encyclopedia, for easy lookup on the job, while studying, or during an open-book exam. • Wider Scope: Covers Statistics I and Statistics II and Six Sigma Black Belt, adding such topics as control charts and statistical process control, process capability analysis, and design of experiments. As a result, this book will be useful for business professionals and industrial engineers in addition to students and professionals in the social and physical sciences. In addition, each of the 60+ concepts is covered in one or more articles. The 75 articles in the book are usually 5–7 pages long, ensuring that things are presented in “bite-sized chunks.” The first page of each article typically lists five “Keys to Understanding” which tell the reader everything they need to know on one page. This book also contains an article on “Which Statistical Tool to Use to Solve Some Common Problems”, additional “Which to Use When” articles on Control Charts, Distributions, and Charts/Graphs/Plots, as well as articles explaining how different concepts work together (e.g., how Alpha, p, Critical Value, and Test Statistic interrelate). ANDREW A. JAWLIK received his B.S. in Mathematics and his M.S. in Mathematics and Computer Science from the University of Michigan. He held jobs with IBM in marketing, sales, finance, and information technology, as well as a position as Process Executive. In these jobs, he learned how to communicate difficult technical concepts in easy – to – understand terms. He completed Lean Six Sigma Black Belt coursework at the IASSC – accredited Pyzdek Institute. In order to understand the confusing statistics involved, he wrote explanations in his own words and graphics. Using this material, he passed the certification exam with a perfect score. Those statistical explanations then became the starting point for this book.