Midterm 2 : Week 7,8,9,10 Flashcards
Define a Study
A study is a detailed investigation into a specific health topic
Define Epidemiology
Epidemiology is the he study of the distribution and determinants of disease in a population and using this study to control the disease
What is a Study in Epidemiological terms?
A Study in epidemiological terms is both surveillance and epidemiological research
Define Surveillance
Surveillance is the tracking and forecasting of any health event or health determinant through the continuous collection of data & the analysis of the data into a report
Define Passive Surveillance
Passive surveillance, is surveillance that issues after a confirmed case or symptom is shown
Define Active Surveillance
Active Surveillance is surveillance that is actively searching for data on disease or other health determinants
Define Epidemiological research
Epidemiological research is the collection of data on the causes, prevention and treatments of disease
Define Valdity
Validity is how well an instrument measures what it claims to measure
Define Precision
Precision is how many times a calculated value is the same when the calculations are done again
Define Accuracy
Accuracy is how close a value is to it’s true value
What are the 4 general processes of health research?
- A question 2. Development of a hypothesis 3. Design a study 4. Assessment of the cause-effect relationship
What things might cause the development of a 1. question?
A question might develop if something is different, or if something changes
How is a hypothesis developed?
We develop a thesis from finding or not finding patterns in preliminary data
What is the purpose of a study?
To test the hypothesis and see if further studies should be done
How do we access whether there is a 4. cause-effect relationship or if it’s just an associational relationship?
You use look at the bradford hill criteria for causation, example. timeline must be correct; the cause must come before the disease, Coherence; It has to agree with currant logic, Dose-Response relationship; the greater the dose there is the greater affect there should be, Consistency; if the experiment is replicated the results must be consistent
What kinds of factors effect the choice of study?
Time,funds, the situation, the issue being studied
What are the key aspects of an experimental study?
Random, controlled (there is a control group) and blind (placebo effect is minimized)
Define a Control group
The control group is the group that gets the placebo or is not exposed to the variable of interest
Define the Treatment group
Receive the treatment, and have almost all the other same variables as the control group
What are the key aspects of an observational study?
No control group
No randomization
Why are Observational studies conducted more often then Experimental studies?
Observational studies are conducted more often then Experimental studies because it can be immoral or unethical to conduct experimental studies sometimes, for example taking a necessary drug away from someone because they were chosen to be put in the control or exposing someone to something that maybe extremely harmful to them for example if the treatment was crack cocaine. But if the subject is already exposed to the treatment of their own accord we can do a observational study
What should the results of a well designed observational study be similar to?
The results of a well designed observational study should be similar to the results of an experimental study if it was done on the subjects
What can self exposure be a consequence of?
Self exposure can be a consequence of habit, occupation, emotional or psychological stress, geographical location etc?
What terms do we use in an observational study instead of control and treatment group?
We use the terms unexposed and exposed group in an observational study instead of control and treatment group
Define Exposed group
The Exposed group is the group that has the characteristic/variable of interest
Define Unexposed group
The Unexposed group is the group that does not have the characteristics/variable of interest but is otherwise similar to the Exposed group
Define the Counterfactual Ideal
The Counterfactual Ideal is when control group and treatment group or unexposed and exposed group are exactly the same; there is not change in variables except the variable of interest. The problem with this is time is a variable as well, so even if the subjects went through 6 months of unexposed and then 6 months of exposed the time variable for when they do the test will be different and therefore the affects on them will differ
What is the Counterfactual Ideal used for?
the Counterfactual Ideal is used as a goal by epidemiological researchers; the match the control group (unexposed group) as closely as they can to the treatment group (exposed group) [except for the variable of interest, ofcourse] so they are as close as possible to the Counterfactual Ideal
Define Crossover study
There will be a control and experimental group and a certain time amount later the people from the control group will become the experimental group and vice versa
What is the Gold Standard for medical research?
R.C.T. : Randomized clinical trials
What are the key aspects of a R.C.T (Randomized Clinical Trial)?
- Two or more interventions (exposures) are compared; no intervention can be an intervention
- Exposure status is assigned randomly; placement of subjects is not controlled by anyone
What are the 5 strengths of RCT’s?
- Information is collected starting in the present into the future; not from the past, so memory accuracy is not as big a problem
- The experiment is controlled
- Less loss to follow up; RCT’s tend not to be long
- Random assignment reduces risk of error, and bias
- It’s easy to blind subjects and researchers
What is the down fall of RCT’s (Randomized Clinical Trials)?
They’re not always possible; for moral and ethical reasons
Define a Cohort Study
A Cohort Study is a study which measures the incidence of disease or another health outcome; starts out with subjects who do not have the disease or health outcome but are at risk for it
What are the 5 key points of a Cohort Study?
- Cohorts are chosen on the basis of whether they’ve been exposed to a variable which is hypothesized to cause a certain disease of health outcome
- Usually a large number of people are followed over a long period of time
- Study can move forward or backward in time; can as about past events or currant events
- Members of the cohort must be able to develop the disease; men can’t be treated for ovarian cancer!
- Cohorts may be open or closed
What are the 3 strengths of a Cohort Study?
- Cohort studies are good for rare exposures
- Comprehensive data
- Can follow multiple outcomes
What are the 4 weaknesses of a Cohort Study?
- Need a large sample size to get a accurate incidence rates
- Must be over a long period of time
- Difficult to maintain followup
- Expensive
Define Case-control Study
A Case-control Study is a study in which groups are chosen based on a disease of interest that the subjects already have
What are the 3 key features of a Case-control study?
- Past history of exposure is being examined; memory accuracy is important
- Usually looks at multiple exposures that are causal
- Must be able to develop the disease; can’t involve women into a study for prostate cancer
What are 3 strengths of a Case-control Study?
- Can be quick
- Inexpensive
- good for studying rare diseases
- looks at many possible causal exposures
What is 3 Weakness of a Case-control Study?
- No control over exposure (high or low) and variables get confusing
- Difficult to find controls to match cases
- Observational; NOT Experimental
What are the advantages and disadvantages of a Case Report Study and Case Series Study?
An advantage of Case Report and Case Series studies inexpensive, simple, and quick ways to find new clinical issues and come up with hypotheses
A disadvantage of Case Report and Case Series studies is that they are retrospective; memory accuracy is vital, it is prone to selection bias, and there is no control
What are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Ecological studies?
The Advantages of ecological studies is that they are quick and inexpensive
The Disadvantage to ecological studies is that they can’t determine a causal relationship because it can’t be used to determine a relationship on a individual level, only a group level
The Advantages and Disadvantages of Cross Sectional Studies
The Advantages of Cross Sectional Studies is that they’re easy to gather data on and assess and are inexpensive
The Disadvantages of Cross Sectional Studies is that it can’t determine a causal relationship, is susceptible to lurking variables, and depends on memory accuracy