Statistics For Pathologists

This essential guide provides a clear, accessible review of the use of statistics in pathology studies. Spanning topics such as exploratory data analysis and descriptive statistics as well as the use of comparative statistics, concordance analysis, categorical and continuous data regression analyses, count data, survival analyses, decision point and clustering analysis, and more, this practical book comprehensively demystifies all the statistical knowledge paramount to working in the field. Throughout the guide, the author team highlights common errors and pitfalls that occur when performing tests and when interpreting data and make suggestions for how to avoid mistakes. Chapters are uniformly structured for ease of use and each chapter concludes with reviewquestions to facilitate self-assessment of the reader's skill in use of statistical methods. Statistics for Pathologists teaches trainees, junior investigators, and seasoned pathologists how to look at their data from the point of view of a statistician and determine what tests should be done, how the data and test should be presented, and how to use the tests practically. Learning statistical applications can greatly enhance and simplify the skills necessary to review and present data accurately and this basic understanding of statistics is critical in pathology-related work. Key Features Clear, concise overviews of every relevant statistical test with application in pathology-related research Includes real published studies to provide examples of use of the tests and interpretation of data Emphasizes how to avoid common errors and pitfalls when conducting tests and interpreting data Provides self-assessment review questions and answers in each chapter Comes with downloadable datasets for the reader so that they can perform statistical analysis tied to the book with popular stats programs

This text provides a comprehensive and practical review of the main statistical methods in pathology and laboratory medicine. It introduces statistical concepts used in pathology and laboratory medicine. The information provided is relevant to pathologists both for their day to day clinical practice as well as in their research and scholarly activities. The text will begins by explaining the fundamentals concepts in statistics. In the later sections, these fundamental concepts are expanded and unique applications of statistical methods in pathology and laboratory medicine practice are introduced. Other sections of the text explain research methodology in pathology covering a broad range of topics from study design to analysis of data. Finally, data-heavy novel concepts that are emerging in pathology and pathology research are presented such as molecular pathology and pathology informatics. Introduction to Statistical Methods in Pathology will be of great value for pathologists, pathology residents, basic and translational researchers, laboratory managers and medical students.

This text is designed for laboratory workers and clinicians but should also be useful for other healthcare workers. The authors assume that the reader has access to a computer with statistical software for inspection and analysis of data. The book has four main parts. Chapter 1 describes the different kinds of data and statistical analyses that can be applied to them. Topics include how to assess the shape of distributions, how to transform data, when to use parametric and non-parametric tests, and how to check data input and deal with outliers. Chapter 2 deals with the inaccuracy, imprecision, detection limits, analytical goals and other aspects of analytical methods used in laboratory medicine, and explains how to compare both quantitative and qualitative analytical methods.

Focusing on practical, patient related issues, this volume provides the basic concepts of Evidence Based Medicine (EBM) as they relate to Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and presents various practical applications. It includes EBM concepts for use in the identification of cost-effective panels of immunostains and other laboratory tests and for improvement of diagnostic accuracy based on the identification of selected diagnostic features for particular differential diagnosis. EBM concepts are also put forth for use in Meta-analysis to integrate the results of conflicting literature reports and use of novel analytical tools such as Bayesian belief networks, neural networks, multivariate statistics and decision tree analysis for the development of new diagnostic and prognostic models for the evaluation of patients. This volume will be of great value to pathologists who will benefit from the concepts being promoted by EBM, such as levels of evidence, use of Bayesian statistics to develop diagnostic and other rules and stronger reliance on "hard data" to support therapeutic and diagnostic modalities.

This book is written in a very easy-to-follow format, and explains the key concepts of biomedical statistics in a lucid yet straightforward manner. It explains how mathematical and statistical tools can be used to find answers to common research questions. In addition, the main text is supplemented by a wealth of solved exercises and illustrative examples to aid in comprehension. Given its content, the book offers an invaluable quick reference guide for graduating students and can be very helpful in their examination process. At the same time, it represents a handy guide for medical and paramedical teachers, post-graduate medical students, research personnel, biomedical scientists and epidemiologists.

The fifth revised edition of this highly successful book presents the most extensive enhancement since Using and Understanding Medical Statistics was first published 30 years ago. Without question, the single greatest change has been the inclusion of source code, together with selected output, for the award-winning, open-source, statistical package known as R. This innovation has enabled the authors to de-emphasize formulae and calculations, and let software do all of the ‘heavy lifting’. This edition also introduces readers to several graphical statistical tools, such as Q-Q plots to check normality, residual plots for multiple regression models, funnel plots to detect publication bias in a meta-analysis and Bland-Altman plots for assessing agreement in clinical measurements. New examples that better serve the expository goals have been added to a half-dozen chapters. In addition, there are new sections describing exact confidence bands for the Kaplan-Meier estimator, as well as negative binomial and zero-inflated Poisson regression models for over-dispersed count data. The end result is not only an excellent introduction to medical statistics, but also an invaluable reference for every discerning reader of medical research literature.

Includes subject section, name section, and 1968-1970, technical reports.