Evidence Based Practice Week 5 - Clinical Intervention Studies

In hypothesis testing, what is the primary consequence of increasing the stringency of the significance level (alpha) from 0.05 to 0.01?

A researcher is evaluating the inter-rater reliability of a new observational tool. Which statistical measure is most appropriate for quantifying the agreement between multiple raters using this tool?

When interpreting Number Needed to Treat (NNT), which of the following scenarios indicates the most effective treatment?

In a clinical trial, a new drug reduces the risk of a certain disease from 8% to 6% in the treatment group. What is the Absolute Risk Reduction (ARR)?

Which of the following statements best describes the utility of Cronbach’s alpha in assessing the validity of a measurement instrument?

What is the most accurate interpretation of a statistically significant p-value (e.g., p < 0.05) in clinical research?

In the context of research, what distinguishes a 'clinically meaningful difference' from a 'statistically significant difference'?

Why is achieving a truly 'representative' sample challenging in clinical research?

What is the primary advantage of using random or consecutive sampling methods in clinical trials?

How does 'availability' influence the representativeness of a study sample?

Why is it important for researchers to consider the method of recruitment and inclusion/exclusion criteria when interpreting study results?

What is the primary challenge researchers face when aiming for a large, perfectly representative sample in clinical research?

In what way is 'generalizability' best understood concerning the application of study results to patient care?

What is the most significant implication of selection bias in clinical research?

Why might a researcher choose to conduct a study with a small sample size at a single site, despite knowing the limitations this poses to generalizability?

In a study comparing a new drug to a placebo, researchers observe a statistically significant difference in recovery time (p < 0.05). However, the baseline characteristics of the treatment and placebo groups were notably different. What is the most critical concern regarding this study's conclusion?

A researcher is analyzing a dataset of income levels in a city. The data is heavily skewed due to a small number of individuals with extremely high incomes. Which combination of descriptive statistics is most appropriate for representing the central tendency and variability of this data?

A physical therapist is evaluating the effectiveness of a new rehabilitation program on improving range of motion in patients after shoulder surgery. They measure each patient's range of motion before and after the program. Which statistical test is most appropriate to determine if there is a significant change in range of motion within the same individuals?

A researcher is investigating the relationship between several independent variables (age, BMI, physical activity level) and a dependent variable (VO2 max). All variables are continuous. Which statistical test is most appropriate for determining the combined predictive power of the independent variables on VO2 max?

A study aims to identify factors that predict which patients with lower back pain will respond positively to physical therapy and which will not. The outcome is binary: 'responder' or 'non-responder.' Which statistical method is best suited to predict group membership based on several independent predictor variables?

A researcher conducts an ANOVA to compare the means of four treatment groups. The ANOVA yields a significant p-value (p < 0.05). What does this p-value indicate?

A research study reports a 95% confidence interval for the mean systolic blood pressure of a population to be 120-130 mmHg. Which of the following is the most accurate interpretation of this confidence interval?

In a correlation analysis, a researcher finds a correlation coefficient of r = -0.85 between two variables. What is the most accurate interpretation of this result?

A researcher is analyzing the effectiveness of a new treatment for a rare disease. The data is not normally distributed, and the sample size is small. Which type of statistical test is most appropriate?

A study compares the effectiveness of three different exercise programs on weight loss. Participants are randomly assigned to one of the three programs. After 12 weeks, the mean weight loss is calculated for each group. Which statistical test is most appropriate to compare the mean weight loss across the three groups?

A researcher is investigating the relationship between hours of exercise per week and body fat percentage. Both variables are continuous. Which statistical test is most appropriate to determine the strength and direction of the linear relationship between these two variables?

A study examines the impact of a new educational program on student test scores. The researchers find a statistically significant improvement in test scores after the program. However, they also discover that students who participated in the program had significantly higher baseline test scores compared to those who did not. Which statistical approach would best adjust for these pre-existing differences?

A researcher wants to determine the independent effects of age, gender, and education level on annual income. Which statistical method is most suitable for this analysis?

A rehabilitation researcher aims to determine the simultaneous impact of age, BMI, and disease duration on predicting the likelihood of successful return to work (yes/no) following a work-related injury. What statistical test aligns best with this research question?

A study is designed to assess the effectiveness of a new drug in reducing blood pressure. Patients are randomly assigned to either the treatment group or the placebo group. What is the primary purpose of ensuring similar baseline characteristics between the two groups?

A research team is investigating the impact of a novel therapeutic exercise on shoulder abduction range of motion (measured in degrees) among individuals with adhesive capsulitis. Recognizing pre-intervention variability, they employ a repeated-measures design. Which statistical test is most appropriate?

A researcher is comparing the effectiveness of two different rehabilitation protocols on improving functional outcomes after stroke. The distribution of functional outcome scores is non-normal. Which statistical test is most appropriate for comparing the two groups?

In a study examining the correlation between grip strength (in kilograms) and functional independence (as measured by the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) score) among elderly individuals, the research team discovers a non-linear relationship. Which statistical method is now most appropriate for assessing the relationship between these two variables?

Researchers are evaluating the effectiveness of a fall-prevention program among older adults with a history of falls. Participants are divided into a fall-prevention group and a control group. What statistical approach should be used to determine if participation in the fall-prevention program is associated with a reduction in the number of falls over a 12-month period?

A research team investigates the impact of a novel rehabilitation program on functional mobility (measured using the Timed Up and Go test) in stroke survivors. Data is gathered before and after the intervention. What statistical approach should be used to determine if there is a statistically significant change in functional mobility following the rehabilitation program?

Consider a cohort study design comparing the effectiveness of a novel rehabilitation approach (Group A) to a traditional approach (Group B) on improving a patient reported outcome measure. If the purpose is to determine the comparative effectiveness of the novel approach in relation to the traditional approach, what type of analysis should be considered?

In the context of outcome evaluation, what critical consideration must be accounted for when interpreting within-group mean change following an intervention?

When evaluating the clinical meaningfulness of an outcome score change, which of the following considerations is MOST important for physical therapists?

In a randomized controlled trial (RCT) evaluating a new intervention, the authors report conclusions solely based on within-group changes, despite the presence of a control group. Under what circumstance might this occur?

Which study design most effectively isolates the treatment effect from confounding factors such as natural history and nonspecific effects?

A physical therapist is examining the correlation between lower extremity strength (measured in Nm) and balance confidence (measured by the Activities-Specific Balance Confidence Scale) in a group of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). After plotting the data, the therapist observes a curvilinear relationship. Which statistical method is MOST appropriate for quantifying the association between these variables?

A research team is studying the effectiveness of a new rehabilitation protocol on improving functional outcomes in patients following total knee arthroplasty (TKA). They measure several outcome variables, including pain, range of motion, and functional mobility. Which of the following statistical methods would be most appropriate for determining the overall effect of the rehabilitation protocol on this set of intercorrelated outcome variables?

A researcher aims to investigate the comparative effectiveness of three different exercise interventions (A, B, and C) on improving shoulder range of motion in patients with adhesive capsulitis. Recognizing the potential influence of baseline range of motion on treatment response, which statistical approach should incorporate baseline values?

A physical therapist wants to assess the reliability of a new goniometer for measuring knee joint range of motion. Two therapists independently measure the knee range of motion of the same group of patients, and the therapist wants to determine the degree of agreement between the two sets of measurements. Which statistical test is most appropriate for this analysis?

Which of the following statements BEST describes the difference between statistical significance and clinical meaningfulness?

Descriptive Statistics

Inferential Statistics

Type I Error

Type II Error

Cronbach's Alpha

Clinical Meaningfulness

P-value

Statistical Significance

Clinically Meaningful Difference

Representative Sample

Random Sampling

Consecutive Sampling

Selection Bias

Voluntary Participation

Generalizability

Average Values

Data Variability

Normal Distribution

Normally Distributed Data

Skewed Data

Median

Confidence Interval

Baseline Characteristics

T-Test

T-Test Data Type

Paired Samples T-Test

ANOVA

Correlation

Logistic Regression

Independent t-test

Paired t-test

Multinomial Logistic Regression

Binary Logistic Regression

Change (within-group)

Difference (between-group)

Treatment Effect (comparative)

Outcome

Constructs of Interest

Outcome Score

Interpreting an Outcome Score

Change in Outcome Scores

Interpreting Meaningfulness