Statistical Methods in Experimental Pathology: A Review and Primer. 2021

Douglas A Mata, and Danny A Milner
Foundation Medicine, Inc., Cambridge, Massachusetts. Electronic address: dmata@foundationmedicine.com.

Correct use of statistical methods is important to ensure the reliability and value of the published experimental pathology literature. Considering increasing interest in the quality of statistical reporting in pathology, the statistical methods used in 10 recent issues of the American Journal of Pathology were reviewed. The statistical tests performed in the articles were summarized, with attention to their implications for contemporary pathology research and practice. Among the 195 articles identified, 93% reported using one or more statistical tests. Retrospective statistical review of the articles revealed several key findings. First, tests for normality were infrequently reported, and parametric hypothesis tests were overutilized. Second, studies reporting multisample hypothesis tests (eg, analysis of variance) infrequently performed post hoc tests to explore differences between study groups. Third, correlation, regression, and survival analysis techniques were underutilized. On the basis of these findings, a primer on relevant statistical concepts and tests is presented, including issues related to optimal study design, descriptive and comparative statistics, and regression, correlation, survival, and genetic data analysis.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D010336 Pathology A specialty concerned with the nature and cause of disease as expressed by changes in cellular or tissue structure and function caused by the disease process. Pathologies
D010506 Periodicals as Topic Works about publications issued at stated, more or less regular, intervals. Journals as Topic,Magazines,Newsletters,Magazine,Newsletter
D012107 Research Design A plan for collecting and utilizing data so that desired information can be obtained with sufficient precision or so that an hypothesis can be tested properly. Experimental Design,Data Adjustment,Data Reporting,Design, Experimental,Designs, Experimental,Error Sources,Experimental Designs,Matched Groups,Methodology, Research,Problem Formulation,Research Methodology,Research Proposal,Research Strategy,Research Technics,Research Techniques,Scoring Methods,Adjustment, Data,Adjustments, Data,Data Adjustments,Design, Research,Designs, Research,Error Source,Formulation, Problem,Formulations, Problem,Group, Matched,Groups, Matched,Matched Group,Method, Scoring,Methods, Scoring,Problem Formulations,Proposal, Research,Proposals, Research,Reporting, Data,Research Designs,Research Proposals,Research Strategies,Research Technic,Research Technique,Scoring Method,Source, Error,Sources, Error,Strategies, Research,Strategy, Research,Technic, Research,Technics, Research,Technique, Research,Techniques, Research
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D012189 Retrospective Studies Studies used to test etiologic hypotheses in which inferences about an exposure to putative causal factors are derived from data relating to characteristics of persons under study or to events or experiences in their past. The essential feature is that some of the persons under study have the disease or outcome of interest and their characteristics are compared with those of unaffected persons. Retrospective Study,Studies, Retrospective,Study, Retrospective
D013223 Statistics as Topic Works about the science and art of collecting, summarizing, and analyzing data that are subject to random variation. Area Analysis,Estimation Technics,Estimation Techniques,Indirect Estimation Technics,Indirect Estimation Techniques,Multiple Classification Analysis,Service Statistics,Statistical Study,Statistics, Service,Tables and Charts as Topic,Analyses, Area,Analyses, Multiple Classification,Area Analyses,Classification Analyses, Multiple,Classification Analysis, Multiple,Estimation Technic, Indirect,Estimation Technics, Indirect,Estimation Technique,Estimation Technique, Indirect,Estimation Techniques, Indirect,Indirect Estimation Technic,Indirect Estimation Technique,Multiple Classification Analyses,Statistical Studies,Studies, Statistical,Study, Statistical,Technic, Indirect Estimation,Technics, Estimation,Technics, Indirect Estimation,Technique, Estimation,Technique, Indirect Estimation,Techniques, Estimation,Techniques, Indirect Estimation
D015203 Reproducibility of Results The statistical reproducibility of measurements (often in a clinical context), including the testing of instrumentation or techniques to obtain reproducible results. The concept includes reproducibility of physiological measurements, which may be used to develop rules to assess probability or prognosis, or response to a stimulus; reproducibility of occurrence of a condition; and reproducibility of experimental results. Reliability and Validity,Reliability of Result,Reproducibility Of Result,Reproducibility of Finding,Validity of Result,Validity of Results,Face Validity,Reliability (Epidemiology),Reliability of Results,Reproducibility of Findings,Test-Retest Reliability,Validity (Epidemiology),Finding Reproducibilities,Finding Reproducibility,Of Result, Reproducibility,Of Results, Reproducibility,Reliabilities, Test-Retest,Reliability, Test-Retest,Result Reliabilities,Result Reliability,Result Validities,Result Validity,Result, Reproducibility Of,Results, Reproducibility Of,Test Retest Reliability,Validity and Reliability,Validity, Face

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