Adigrat University

Collage of Medicine and Health Sciences

Department of Public Health
Introduction to Biostatistics

BERHANE F. (MPH in Epidemiology & Biostatistics)

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 Learning objectives
After completing this chapter, the student will
be able to:
1. Define Statistics and Biostatistics
2. Enumerate the importance and limitations of
statistics
3. Define and Identify the different types of data
and
4. understand why we need to classifying
variables
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 Introduction
• Statistics is the science of gaining information from data through-
producing/collecting data, organizing data, and drawing
conclusion (inferences) from data.

• The tools of statistics are employed in many fields such as

business, education, psychology, agriculture, economics, to
mention only a few.

• When the data being analyzed are derived from the biological
sciences and medicine, we use the term biostatistics to
distinguish this particular application of statistical tools and
concepts
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 Types of statistics
Descriptive statistics
• Branch of statistics where we record and analyze observations
for all the individuals of a group or population and draw
inferences about the same.
• Collection ,Organization, Summarization and Presentation

Inferential statistics
• If we choose a sample and draw inferences about the
population
• Tools for generalizing beyond actual observations
• Generalize from a sample to a population
• Hypothesis testing , estimation
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 Statistics

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 Definition of Some Basic terms
 The term statistics is used to mean either
statistical data or statistical methods.

• Statistical data is the numerical description of

things (counts/measurements)

• Statistical method is the methods that are

used to collect, organize, analyze and interpret
data.
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 Definition cont…
Target Population: A collection of items that have something in
common for which we wish to draw conclusions at a
particular time.

Study(sampled) Population: is a part of target

population and actually accessible and legitimate for
data collection

Sample: A subset of a study population, about which

information is actually obtained. It is a part of a
population

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 Definition cont…

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 Definition cont…
 Census: Complete enumeration of the population

 Sample survey: A statistical study based on samples

 Parameter: A descriptive measure computed from the data of

a population.

 Statistic: A descriptive measure computed from the data of a

sample

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 Definition cont…
 Data: are values, observations, measurements, facts
or figures that variables describing an event in a
given survey, census, experiment or any other study

 Sampling: The technique of selecting representative portion

of the entire population

 Variable: A characteristic which takes different values in

different persons, places, or things/objects.

(e.g., BP, age, sex, birth weight, etc)

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 What is biostatistics?
• Application of statistical methods on biological
phenomena.
Why we need biostatistics?
• To handle variations
– Biological variation
• Attribute differ not only among individuals but also
within same individual over time
• Example: height, weight, blood pressure, eye color ...
– Sample variation
• Biomedical research projects are usually carried out on
small numbers of study subjects
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 Why we learn biostatistics?
• Essential for scientific method of investigation
– To define what is normal/ healthy in a population
– To compare drug action –potency/efficacy
– Confirm association between two attributes: e.g.
Cancer with smoking or Socioeconomic status and
malnutrition
– Usefulness of vaccines
• Essential for understanding, appraisal and
critique of scientific literature

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► Is this new drug or procedure better than the one commonly
in use ? E.g coartum and fancider ? How much better?

►In testing a new drug how many patients must be treated, and
in what manner, in order to demonstrate its worth?

►Which group of the population is more affected by malaria?

etc.

►Therefore, it is necessary to make ourselves familiarize with

statistical techniques in order to understand the medical
literature and to undertake our own research work
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 Uses of biostatistics
• Provide a way of organizing information
• Assessment of health status
• Health program evaluation
• Resource allocation
• Magnitude of association
– Strong vs weak association between exposure and
outcome

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 Uses of biostatistics cont…
• Assessing risk factors
– Cause & effect relationship
• Evaluation of a new vaccine or drug
– What can be concluded if the proportion of
people free from the disease is greater among the
vaccinated than the unvaccinated?
– How effective is the vaccine (drug)?
– Is the effect due to chance or some bias?
• Drawing of inferences
– Information from sample to population
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 What does biostatistics cover?
Research Planning

Design The best way to

Biostatistical learn about
thinking biostatistics is to
Execution (Data collection)
contribute in follow the flow of a
every step in a research from
Data Processing
research inception to the
final publication
Data Analysis

Presentation

Interpretation
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 LIMITATIONS WITH STATISTICS

• Does not deal with individual measurements.

• Cannot be used to study qualitative

phenomenon.

• Requires one who has a sound knowledge of

statistical methods.

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 Classification of data
1. Based on the sources
Primary
• When data is collected directly from the respondents
• First hand information obtained by the investigator is
more reliable and accurate since the investigator can
extract the correct information by removing doubts

Secondary
• When investigator uses data, which have already been
collected by others. Can be from the existing public
records, research institutes, federal and regional
statistical agencies and/or from the published or
unpublished manuscripts, newspapers and books.
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2. Based on the amount/quantity
 Qualitative /categorical data
 Quantitative / numerical data: can be
Discrete/continuous

3. Based on the composition

• Real data
• Artificial data

4. Based on data arrangement

– Grouped data _ Ungrouped data

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 Types of variables
 In broad terms, we have two types of variables: (quantitative and
qualitative variables)
Quantitative variable:
 Information is measured by assigning numbers (eg. Age, BP, birth
weight, etc)
 We can further divided quantitative variable in to two:

a. Discrete data:
 when numbers represent actual measurable quantities rather
than mere labels.

 Discrete data are restricted to taking only specified values often integers or
counts that differ by fixed amounts.
e.g. Number of new AIDS cases reported during one year period,
Number of beds available in a particular hospital
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 Types of variables
b. Continuous data:

 Represent measurable quantities but are not restricted to taking

on certain specific values

 Rather fractional values are possible

e.g. weight, cholesterol level, time, temperature

Qualitative variable
 Information is measured by assigning names to items (events)
according to a set of rules, which result on different types of data.
 Eg. Gender, blood group, Marital status
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 Types of variables cont…
– Measurement: Is the assignment of numbers to the
object or events according to a set of rules.

– The way how variables are categorized, counted, or

measured uses measurement scale; there are four
common types of measurement scales .

– Namely nominal, ordinal, interval and ratio scales.

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 Types of variables cont…

1. Nominal data: The observations are classified into categories

that are different in character and cannot be measured or
ordered.
As the name implies it consists of “Naming” observations or
classifying them in to mutually exclusive (no overlapping) and
collectively exhausting categories in which no ranking or order
can be placed on the data.
• For example, gender, eye color, blood group.

2. Ordinal data: The observations are classified into categories that

can be ordered in an ascending series.
For example, severity of an illness may be categorized as: mild,
moderate or severe.
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3 . Interval scale of measurement:

• It is the more sophisticated scale than the nominal or the

ordinal; in this scale it is not only possible to order
measurement but also the distance between any two
measurements is known .

• In interval data the intervals between values are the

same.

• Example: in the Fahrenheit temperature scale, the

difference between 70 degrees and 71 degrees is the
same as the difference between 32 and 33 degrees. 24
• But the scale is not a RATIO Scale. 40 degrees Fahrenheit
is not twice as much as 20 degrees Fahrenheit.
• In interval scale of measurement there is no true zero
value i.e. the presence of zero value is not an indicative
of total absence of quantity being measured.

• Example; in measuring of temperature zero degree does

not indicate lack of heat at all.

• The interval scale unlike nominal and ordinal scale is a

true quantitative scale.

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4.The ratio scale of measurement:

• Is the highest level of scale of measurement.

• It possesses all the characterstics of interval measurement,

and their exist a true zero.

• In addition true ratio exists when the same variable is

measured on two different members of the population.

• Example: If one person can lift 200 pound and another can lift
100 pound, then the ratio between them is 2 to 1.

• That means the first person can lift twice as much as the
second person.
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 Types of variables cont…

Categorical Quantitative

binary nominal ordinal discrete continuous

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 Levels of measurement
Measurement scale Permissible mathematic Best measure of
operations central tendency

Nominal Counting Mode

Ordinal Greater or less than Median

operations

Interval Addition and subtraction Symmetrical – Mean

Skewed – Median

Ratio Addition, subtraction, Symmetrical – Mean

multiplication and division Skewed – Median
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 What type of variable is Ve4xdf
1. No. of movies seen this summer (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, …)

2. Favorite music type of (rock, jazz, folk, classical)

3. Happiness (very happy, pretty happy, not too happy)

• Quantitative or categorical?

• Nominal, ordinal, interval or ratio scale?

• Continuous or discrete?

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 Exercises :
Give the correct scales of measurement for each variable:
1. Blood group ...............................
2. Temperature (Celsius,Fahrenheit) ...............
3. Hair colour ................................
4. Job satisfaction index (1-5).........
5. Number of heart attacks .............
6. Calendar year ...........................
7. Number of delivery at adigrat hospital in 2008 E.C ..........
8. Number of accidents in a 3 - year period....
9. Number of cases of each reportable disease
reported by a health worker.......
10. The average weight gain of 6 1-year old dogs with
a special diet supplement was 950 grams last month...
11. Ethnic group..........................
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 THANK YOU

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