Introduction to

Biostatistics
Learning Outcomes:
Basic Definitions Terms
Concepts

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Definition of Statistics
• Different authors have defined statistics differently. The best
definition of statistics is given by Croxton and Cowden according to
whom statistics may be defined as the science, which deals
with collection, presentation, analysis and interpretation of
numerical data .
• The science and art of dealing with variation in data through collection,
classification, and analysis in such a way as to obtain reliable results. —
(John M. Last, A Dictionary of Epidemiology )
• Branch of mathematics that deals with the collection, organization,
and analysis of numerical data and with such problems as
experiment design and decision making. —(Microsoft Encarta
Premium 2009)

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Definition of Biostatistics= Medical statistics
• Biostatistics may be defined as application
of
statistical methods to medical, biological
and public health related problems.
• It is the scientific treatment given to the medical data
derived from group of individuals or patients
Collection of data.
Presentation of the collected data.
Analysis and interpretation of the results.
Making decisions on the basis of such analysis
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 Role of Statistics in Clinical
Medicine
• The main theory of statistics lies in the term variability.
• There is No two individuals are same. For example, blood pressure of
person may vary from time to time as well as from person to person.
We can also have instrumental variability as well as
observers variability.
• Methods of statistical inference provide largely objective means for
drawing conclusions from the data about the issue under study.
Medical science is full of uncertainties and statistics deals with
uncertainties. Statistical methods try to quantify the uncertainties present
in medical science.
• It helps the researcher to arrive at a scientific judgment about
a hypothesis. It has been argued that decision making is an
integral part of a physician’s work.
• Frequently, decision making is probability based.
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Role of Statistics in
Public Health and Community Medicine

Statistics finds an extensive use in Public Health and Community Medicine. Statistical
methods are foundations for public health administrators to understand what is happening
to the population under their care at community level as well as
individual level. If reliable information regarding the disease is available, the public health
administrator is in a position to:
●Assess community needs
● Understand socio-economic determinants of health
●Plan experiment in health research
● Analyze their results
● Study diagnosis and prognosis of the disease for taking
effective action
●Scientifically test the efficacy of new medicines and
methods of treatment.

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Why we need to study Medical Statistics?
Three reasons:
(1) Basic requirement of medical research.

(2) Update your medical knowledge.

(3) Data management and treatment.

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 Role of statisticians
 To guide the design of an experiment or survey prior to
data collection

 To analyze data using proper statistical procedures and

 To present and interpret the results to researchers and

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I. Basic concepts
• Homogeneity: All individuals have similar values or belong
to same category.
Example: all individuals are Chinese, man, middle age (30~40 years
old), work in a computer factory ---- homogeneity in nationality,
gender, age and occupation.
• Variation: the differences in feature, voice…
• Throw a coin: The mark face may be up or down ---- variation!
• Treat the patients suffering from pneumonia with same antibiotics: A
part of them recovered and others didn’t ---- variation!
• If there is no variation, there is no need for statistics.
• Many examples of variation in medical field: height, weight, pulse,
blood pressure, … …
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2. Population and Sample

• Population: The whole collection of individuals that one intends to

• Randomization: An important way to make the sample

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Random
By chance!
• Random event: the event may occur or may not occur in one
experiment.
Before one experiment, nobody is sure whether the event occurs or
not.
Example: weather, traffic accident, …
There must be some regulation in a large number of experiments.

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3. Probability
• Measure the possibility of occurrence of a random event.
• A : random event
• P(A) : Probability of the random event A
P(A)=1, if an event always occurs.
P(A)=0, if an event never occurs.

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4. Parameter and Statistic
• Parameter : A measure of population or
A measure of the distribution of population.
Parameter is usually presented by Greek letter.
such as μ,π,σ.
-- Parameters are unknown usually
To know the parameter of a population, we need a sample
• Statistic: A measure of sample or A measure of the
distribution of sample.
Statistic is usually presented by Latin letter
such as s , p, t. 12
5. Sampling Error

error :The difference between observed value and true

Three kinds of error:

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 Sampling error
• The statistics of different samples from same population:
different each other!
• The statistics: different from the parameter!

The sampling error exists in any sampling research.

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