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Unit Eight: Principles of Critical Appraisal - Cochrane Public Health ...

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Bias<br />

“The medical literature can be<br />

compared to a jungle. It is fast<br />

growing, full <strong>of</strong> dead wood, sprinkled<br />

with hidden treasure and infested with<br />

spiders and snakes.”<br />

Peter Morgan, Scientific Editor,<br />

Canadian Medical Association<br />

1. Selection bias<br />

2. Allocation bias<br />

3. Confounding<br />

4. Blinding (detection bias)<br />

5. Data collection methods<br />

6. Withdrawals and drop-outs<br />

7. Statistical analysis<br />

8. Intervention integrity<br />

Selection bias<br />

Recruit participants<br />

Intervention<br />

Allocation<br />

Allocation <strong>of</strong><br />

concealment<br />

Control<br />

Selection bias<br />

Confounding<br />

Recruiting study population<br />

Exposed to<br />

intervention<br />

Follow-up<br />

Outcome<br />

Integrity <strong>of</strong><br />

intervention<br />

Intention-to-treat<br />

Withdrawals<br />

Blinding <strong>of</strong> outcome<br />

assessment<br />

Not exposed to<br />

intervention<br />

Follow-up<br />

Outcome<br />

• Differences in the way patients are<br />

accepted or rejected for a trial, and the<br />

way in which interventions are assigned<br />

to individuals<br />

• Difficult in public health studies<br />

Analysis<br />

Data collection<br />

methods<br />

Statistical analysis<br />

Analysis<br />

Question One: checklist<br />

Allocation bias<br />

a) Are the individuals selected to<br />

participate in the study likely to be<br />

representative <strong>of</strong> the target<br />

population?<br />

b) What percentage <strong>of</strong> the selected<br />

individuals/schools, etc agreed to<br />

participate?<br />

Randomisation (coin-toss,<br />

computer)<br />

Allocation schedule<br />

Allocation<br />

Intervention<br />

Control<br />

Alternate, days <strong>of</strong> week,<br />

record number<br />

Allocation<br />

Intervention<br />

Control<br />

2

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