BASIC METHODS OF MEDICAL RESEARCH
by A. Indrayan
1. Basics of Medical Research
1.1 Steps in medical research
1.2 Research protocol
1.3 Ethics of medical research
1.4 Tail piece
2. Review of the Existing
Information
2.1 Searching medical literature
2.2 Critique of a medical report
2.3 Searching the existing data
3. Uncertainties in Medical
Research
3.1 Varieties of uncertainties in medical research
3.2 Controlling some epistemic uncertainties
3.3 Assessing uncertainties
4. Designs for Observational
Studies
4.1
Prospective study
4.2
Retrospective Study
4.3
Cross-Sectional Study
5.
Designs for Clinical Trials and Medical Experiments
5.1 Clinical trials
5.2 Medical experiments
5.3 Varieties of bias to guard against
6.
Sampling
6.1 Sampling for descriptive studies
6.2 Sampling for analytical studies
6.3 Sampling and nonsampling errors
6.4 Determination of sample size for medical research
7.
Collection and Collation of the Data
7.1 Sources of medical data
7.2 Quality of data
7.3 Types of measurements
7.4 Collation of data
7.5 Standardisation and other adjustments for data comparability
8. Assessment of Health and
Disease
8.1 Statistical distribution of medical measurements
8.2
8.3 Assessment of medical factors
9. Assessment
of Mortality and Survival
9.1 Mortality indices
9.2 Survival analysis
10. Relative Risk and Odds Ratio
8.1 Epidemiological indices
8.2 Sensitivity, specificity, and predictivities
8.3 Relative risk, odds ratio, and attributable risk
11.
Confidence Intervals and Robustness
11.1 Confidence intervals for medical parameters
11.2 Robustness of research results
12. Statistical Significance
12.1 P-value and power
12.2 Statistical significance and medical significance
12.2 Statistical tests for qualitative data
12.3 Statistical tests for quantitative data
13. Medical Relationships
13.1 General features of a regression
13.2 Logistic regression for medical factors
13.3 Linear and Cox regression
14.
Correlation and Cause-Effect
14.4 The strength of medical relationship
14.5 Cause-effect relationship in medical research
14.6 Clinical agreement
15. Presentation of Results
15.1 Components of a research report
15.2 Presentation style
15.3 Reporting ethics for medical research
15.4 Finally yours
Glossary of
Methodological Terms
Index