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Dictionary of Evidence-based Medicine.pdf

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<strong>Dictionary</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Evidence</strong>-<strong>based</strong> <strong>Medicine</strong> I I<br />

Figure 2 Bayes' theorem: Bayesian revision <strong>of</strong> probabilities given new data<br />

Benefits received<br />

Benefits received is a criterion used for assessing the fairness <strong>of</strong> various<br />

charges, particularly in relation to taxes. Property taxes are <strong>of</strong>ten set to<br />

meet this criterion since larger properties would utilize more <strong>of</strong> public<br />

services, such as garbage disposal and police protection (see Ability to pay<br />

for comparison).<br />

Berkson's fallacy<br />

Berkson's fallacy refers to the spurious correlation which may be observed<br />

between two diseases or between a disease and a risk factor arising from<br />

biased sampling (Berkson J (1946) Limitations <strong>of</strong> the application <strong>of</strong> fourfold<br />

table analysis to hospital data. Biometrics Bulletin. 2: 47-53).<br />

Best evidence<br />

There is much controversy about what constitutes best evidence on<br />

which to base decisions in the health care context. There is wide agreement<br />

that for establishing efficacy, a well-designed and conducted randomized<br />

controlled trial (RCT) is the gold standard. However, it is also widely<br />

accepted that the results <strong>of</strong> RCTs may not generalize very well to the practice<br />

situation and other trial designs may be more appropriate (Green G,<br />

Wennberg J, Sackett D (1997) Best evidence. BMJ. 315:1636).<br />

Best <strong>Evidence</strong> is also the name <strong>of</strong> an annually updated CD-ROM publication<br />

which includes articles from the American College <strong>of</strong> Physicians<br />

(ACP) Journal Club and editorials on various issues in clinical decision

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