Stats >> Journal >> Mountain >> References on Clinical Importance

Absolute Risk

Completeness of reporting trial results: effect on physicians' willingness to prescribe. Bobbio M, Demichelis B, Giustetto G. Lancet 1994: 343(8907); 1209-11. [Medline]

General practice registrar responses to the use of different risk communication tools in simulated consultations: a focus group study. Edwards A. British Medical Journal 1999: 319(7212); 749-752.

Explaining risks: turning numerical data into meaningful pictures. Edwards A, Elwyn G, Mulley A. Bmj 2002: 324(7341); 827-30. [Medline] [Full text] [PDF]

Evidence based purchasing: understanding results of clinical trials and systematic reviews. Fahey T, Griffiths S, Peters TJ. British Medical Journal 1995: 311(7012); 1056-9; discussion 1059-60. [Medline] [Abstract] [Full text]

Absolutely relative: how research results are summarized can affect treatment decisions. Forrow L, Taylor W, Arnold R. The American Journal of Medicine 1992: 92(2); 121-24.

Communicating the benefits of chronic preventive therapy: does the format of efficacy data determine patients' acceptance of treatment? Hux J, Naylor C. Medical Decision Making 1995: 15(2); 152-7.

Absolute and relative truth in clinical trials. Julian D. Lancet 2002(June): 359(9321); 1945-1946.

Quality of life questionnaires: does statistically significant = clinically important? Juniper EF. J Allergy Clin Immunol 1998: 102(1); 16-7. [Medline] [Full text] [PDF]

An assessment of clinically useful measures of the consequences of treatment. Laupacis A, Sackett D, Roberts R. New England Journal of Med 1988: 318(26); 1728-1733. [Medline]

Consider absolute risks in SIDS prevention. Logan S. Arch Dis Child 2000: 83(5); 457.

Who benefits from medical interventions? Smith GD, Egger M. Bmj 1994: 308(6921); 72-4. [Medline] [Full text]

Women need better information about routine mammography. Thornton H, Edwards A, Baum M. Bmj 2003: 327(7406); 101-3. [Medline] [Full text] [PDF]

"Absolute" is inappropriate for quantitative risk estimation. Tunstall-Pedoe H. BMJ 2000: 320(7236); 723-. [Full text]

Confidence Intervals

Statistical Significance and Clinical Relevance: A Contradiction?. Hauschke D, Statistical Solutions. Accessed on 2003-06-24. www.statsol.ie/equivtest/hauschke1.htm

Examples

Grapefruits and drugs: when is statistically significant clinically significant? Abernethy DR. J Clin Invest 1997: 99(10); 2297-8. [Medline] [Full text] [PDF]

The association of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs with upper gastrointestinal tract bleeding. Carson JL, Strom BL, Soper KA, West SL, Morse ML. Arch Intern Med 1987: 147(1); 85-8. [Medline]

Effect of homoeopathy on pain and other events after acute trauma: placebo controlled trial with bilateral oral surgery. Lokken P, Straumsheim PA, Tveiten D, Skjelbred P, Borchgrevink CF. British Medical Journal 1995: 310(6992); 1439-42. [Medline] [Abstract] [Full text]

Interventions for promoting smoking cessation during pregnancy. Lumley J, Oliver S, Waters E. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2000: (2); CD001055. [Abstract]

Quality of randomised controlled trials in head injury. Trials in head injury are more complex than review suggests. Murray GD, Teasdale GM. British Medical Journal 2000: 321(7270); 1223. [Medline] [Full text]

Assessing clinically significant change: application to the SCL-90-R. Schmitz N, Hartkamp N, Franke GH. Psychol Rep 2000: 86(1); 263-74. [Medline]

The Crack Baby Epidemic That Wasn't. What Statistics Mean, and Don't Mean. Schwartzberg NS. Accessed on 2003-07-15. www.biomednet.com/hmsbeagle/50/people/op_ed.htm

Multiple doses of secretin in the treatment of autism: a controlled study. Sponheim E, Oftedal G, Helverschou SB. Acta Paediatr 2002: 91(5); 540-5. [Medline]

What is the relationship between the minimally important difference and health state utility values? The case of the SF-6D. Walters SJ, Brazier JE. Health Qual Life Outcomes 2003: 1(1); 4. [Medline]

Methodology

What is the chance that this study is clinically significant? A proposal for Q values. Froehlich GW. Eff Clin Pract 1999: 2(5); 234-9. [Medline] [Full text]

Negative Trials

Survey of claims of no effect in abstracts of Cochrane reviews. Alderson P, Chalmers I. Bmj 2003: 326(7387); 475. [Medline] [Full text] [PDF]

Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. Altman DG, Bland JM. British Medical Journal 1995: 311(7003); 485. [Medline] [Full text]

Underpowered clinical trials of antiretroviral treatment. Arribas JR, Pulido F. Jama 2002: 288(17); 2120; author reply 2120-1. [Medline]

The prevalence of negative studies with inadequate statistical power: an analysis of the plastic surgery literature. Chung KC, Kalliainen LK, Spilson SV, Walters MR, Kim HM. Plast Reconstr Surg 2002: 109(1); 1-6; discussion 7-8. [Medline]

Negative results of randomized clinical trials published in the surgical literature: equivalency or error? Dimick JB, Diener-West M, Lipsett PA. Arch Surg 2001: 136(7); 796-800. [Medline]

Putting trials on trial--the costs and consequences of small trials in depression: a systematic review of methodology. Hotopf M, Lewis G, Normand C. J Epidemiol Community Health 1997: 51(4); 354-8.

"Evidence of absence" can be important. Joffe M. Bmj 2003: 326(7401); 1267. [Medline] [Full text]

Epidemiological appraisal of studies of residential exposure to power frequency magnetic fields and adult cancers. Li CY, Theriault G, Lin RS. Occup Environ Med 1996: 53(8); 505-10. [Medline]

Thirst, interdialytic weight gain, and thirst-interventions in hemodialysis patients: a literature review. Mistiaen P. Nephrol Nurs J 2001: 28(6); 601-4, 610-3; quiz 614-5. [Medline]

MR findings in humeral epicondylitis. A systematic review. Pasternack I, Tuovinen EM, Lohman M, Vehmas T, Malmivaara A. Acta Radiol 2001: 42(5); 434-40. [Medline]

The ethics of tiny trials. Phillips B. Arch Dis Child 2002: 87(3); 258. [Medline]

Epidemiology of silicone-related disease. Swan SH. Semin Arthritis Rheum 1994: 24(1 Suppl 1); 38-43. [Medline]

Distinguishing between "no evidence of effect" and "evidence of no effect" in randomised controlled trials and other comparisons. Tarnow-Mordi WO, Healy M. Arch Dis Child 1999: 80(3); 210-213. [Full text] [PDF]

Cost effectiveness calculations and sample size. Torgerson DJ, Campbell MK. BMJ 2000: 321697. [Full text] [PDF]

Elevated blood lead levels in children of construction workers. Whelan E, Piacitelli G, Gerwel B, Schnorr T, Mueller C, Gittleman J, Matte T. American Journal of Public Health 1997: 87(8); 1352-55.

Overview

Is it clinically significant? Erill S. Lancet 2002: 359(9318); 1708. [Full text] [PDF]

Efficacy, safety, and cost of new anticancer drugs. Garattini S, Bertele V. British Medical Journal 2002: 325(7358); 269-71. [Medline] [Full text] [PDF]

Clinical versus statistical considerations in the design and analysis of clinical research. Horwitz RI, Singer BH, Makuch RW, Viscoli CM. J Clin Epidemiol 1998: 51(4); 305-7. [Medline]

Why randomized controlled trials fail but needn't: 2. Failure to employ physiological statistics, or the only formula a clinician-trialist is ever likely to need (or understand!). Sackett DL. Cmaj 2001: 165(9); 1226-37. [Medline] [Full text] [PDF]

Pain Example

Clinically significant changes in pain along the visual analog scale. Bird SB, Dickson EW. Ann Emerg Med 2001: 38(6); 639-43. [Medline]

The visual analog scale for pain: clinical significance in postoperative patients. Bodian CA, Freedman G, Hossain S, Eisenkraft JB, Beilin Y. Anesthesiology 2001: 95(6); 1356-61. [Medline]

Does the clinically significant difference in visual analog scale pain scores vary with gender, age, or cause of pain? Kelly AM. Acad Emerg Med 1998: 5(11); 1086-90. [Medline]

A proposal to use confidence intervals for visual analog scale data for pain measurement to determine clinical significance. Mantha S, Thisted R, Foss J, Ellis JE, Roizen MF. Anesth Analg 1993: 77(5); 1041-7. [Medline]

Determining the minimum clinically significant difference in visual analog pain score for children. Powell CV, Kelly AM, Williams A. Ann Emerg Med 2001: 37(1); 28-31. [Medline]

A randomized controlled trial of fentanyl for abortion pain. Rawling MJ, Wiebe ER. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2001: 185(1); 103-7. [Medline]

Clinical utility and clinical significance in the assessment and management of pain in vulnerable infants. Stevens B, Gibbins S. Clin Perinatol 2002: 29(3); 459-68. [Medline]

Minimum clinically significant VAS differences for simultaneous (paired) interval serial pain assessments. Yamamoto LG, Nomura JT, Sato RL, Ahern RM, Snow JL, Kuwaye TT. Am J Emerg Med 2003: 21(3); 176-9. [Medline] [Abstract]

Particularizing

Making consent patient centred. Bridson J, Hammond C, Leach A, Chester MR. BMJ 2003: 327(7424); 1159-1161. [Full text] [PDF]

Changes in clinical trials mandated by the advent of meta-analysis. Chalmers TC, Lau J. Stat Med 1996: 15(12); 1263-8; discussion 1269-72. [Medline]

Applying the results of trials and systematic reviews to individual patients. Glasziou P, Guyatt GH, Dans AL, Dans LF, Straus S, Sackett DL. ACP Journal Club 1998: 129(3); A15-6. [Medline]

Can treatment that is helpful on average be harmful to some patients? A study of the conflicting information needs of clinical inquiry and drug regulation. Horwitz RI, Singer BH, Makuch RW, Viscoli CM. J Clin Epidemiol 1996: 49(4); 395-400. [Medline]

Decision analysis and the implementation of research findings. Lilford RJ, Pauker SG, Braunholtz DA, Chard J. British Medical Journal 1998: 317(7155); 405-9. [Medline] [Full text]

Variation in patient utilities for outcomes of the management of chronic stable angina. Implications for clinical practice guidelines. Ischemic Heart Disease Patient Outcomes Research Team. Nease RF, Kneeland T, O'Connor GT, Sumner W, Lumpkins C, Shaw L, Pryor D, Sox HC. Jama 1995: 273(15); 1185-90.

Recombinant or urinary follicle-stimulating hormone? A cost-effectiveness analysis derived by particularizing the number needed to treat from a published meta-analysis. Ola B, Papaioannou S, Afnan MA, Hammadieh N, Gimba S. Fertil Steril 2001: 75(6); 1106-10. [Medline]

Pronouncements about the need for "generalizability" of randomized controlled trial results are humbug. Sackett DL. Control. Clinical Trials 2000: 2182S.

Conflicting clinical trials and the uncertainty of treating mild hypertension. Toth PJ, Horwitz RI. Am J Med 1983: 75(3); 482-8. [Medline]

QOL Example

Interpreting thresholds for a clinically significant change in health status in asthma and COPD. Jones PW. Eur Respir J 2002: 19(3); 398-404. [Medline]

Reporting

How well is the clinical importance of study results reported? An assessment of randomized controlled trials. Chan KB, Man-Son-Hing M, Molnar FJ, Laupacis A. Cmaj 2001: 165(9); 1197-202. [Abstract] [Full text] [PDF]

Stats >> Journal >>  Mountain >> References on Clinical Importance

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