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Trade Review
"Suitable for both undergraduates and professional dentists with years of practice under their belts alike, this 200-page paperback aims to provide a basic understanding of research in dentistry and how it is conducted and reported
This book provides an invaluable insight into how scientific findings in dentistry are researched and reported."
bdanews, December 2006
Table of Contents
Foreword viii
Preface ix
Acknowledgements xii
1 Evidence-based dentistry: what it is and how to practice it 1
What is evidence-based dentistry? 1
Why do we need evidence-based dentistry? 2
How to practice evidence-based dentistry 3
2 Counting people: understanding percentages and proportions 10
What is the aim of the study? 10
How was the study conducted? 11
What are the main results? 12
The implications of conducting a study based on a sample of people 15
How good is the evidence? 19
What does the study contribute to dental practice? 23
3 Taking measurements on people 31
What is the aim of the study? 31
How was the study conducted? 32
What are the main results? 35
Normal distribution 35
Interpreting the results from non-symmetric data 40
4 Comparing groups of people and examining associations 44
Comparing two percentages (or proportions) 44
Comparing two means 51
Examining associations 55
5 Assessing the effectiveness of treatments 68
Main design elements of randomised clinical trials 69
A clinical trial based on counting people 71
A clinical trial based on taking measurements on people 89
Appendix I. Guidelines for the appraisal of a clinical trial 99
6 Determining risk factors for and causes of disease 115
Association, causality and confounding 116
Cohort studies 119
An example of a cohort study 121
Case–control studies 131
An example of a case–control study 132
Appendix I. Guidelines for the appraisal of an observational study 141
Appendix II. Calculation of odds, risk, odds ratio and relative risk 143
7 Detecting disease 154
Conditions for a worthwhile screening programme 156
8 Study design issues 172
Types of study 172
Selecting the sample 172
Sample size 173
More observational studies 177
Bias 178
Confounding 180
More on clinical trials 182
What is the strength of evidence for causality from different study types? 183
9 Reviewing all the evidence 186
Searching for information 186
Conflicts of interests in published research 188
Systematic reviews 189
10 Summary of statistical concepts 205
Suggested answers 209
Further reading 219
Index 222
