BIOSTATISTICS

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 1. Introduction

1. Definition
• The term statistics have two definitions;

– When used in singular sense

– When used in its plural sense

• In its plural sense, it is equivalent to numerical facts,

figures or measurements.
• But all numerical figures are not statistics.

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Statistics in its Singular Sense: (field of study/subject matter)
• The branch of applied research that deals with the development and
application of methods for collecting, organizing, presenting, analysing
and interpreting of numerical data.
• Biostatistics is the branch of statistics responsible for the proper
interpretation of scientific data generated in the biology, public health
and other health sciences (i.e., the biomedical sciences). In other words
statistical processes and methods applied to the collection, analysis, and
interpretation of biological data and especially data relating to human
biology, health, and medicine.

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 Stage of statistical investigation

According to its singular definition we have five steps in any

statistical investigation.

Steps
1.Collection of data
 The process of obtaining measurements or counts.

2. Organization of data
 Includes editing, classifying, and tabulating the data collected.

3. Presentation of data:
 overall view of what the data actually looks like.
 facilitate further statistical analysis.
 Can be done in the form of tables and graphs or diagrams.
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4. Analysis of data
 To dig out useful information for decision making
 It involves extracting relevant information from the data (like
mean, median, mode, range, variance…) using elementary
mathematical operation.

5. Interpretation of data
 Concerned with drawing conclusions from the data collected
and analyzed; and giving meaning to analysis results.
 A difficult task and requires a high degree of skill and
experience.

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 Classifications of Statistics

1. Descriptive Statistics
 A statistical method that is concerned with the collection,
organization, summarization, and analysis of data from a sample of
population.
 With descriptive statistics we are simply describing what is or what
the data shows (describes existing situation).

2. Inferential Statistics
 A statistical method that is concerned with the drawing conclusions/
inferring about a particular population by selecting and measuring a
random sample from the population.

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 Uses of Statistics
• It presents facts in a definite and precise form.

• Data reduction.

• Measuring the magnitude of variations in data.

• Furnishes a technique of comparison

• Estimating unknown population characteristics.

• Testing and formulating of hypothesis.

• Studying the relationship between two or more variable.

• Forecasting future events.

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 Cont.……
 allows clinical researchers to draw reasonable and accurate
inferences from collected information.
 to make sound decisions in the presence of uncertainty.

 used to test various hypotheses and interpret experimental

results.
 It provide crucial information about different biological
processes, related factors, disease occurrence, birth and
mortality rate, degree at which an infection spreads and is
recovered, the population at a given point in time, etc.

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 Definition of Some Basic Terms

• Data: refers to a collection of facts, values, observations, or

measurements that the variables can assume.
• Population: is the complete set of possible measurements for which
inferences are to be made.
• Census: a complete enumeration of the population. But in most real
problems it cannot be realized, hence we take sample.
• Sample: A sample from a population is the set of measurements that
are actually collected in the course of an investigation.
• A sample survey: is a study that obtains data from a subset of a
population, in order to estimate population attributes

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• Parameter: Characteristic or measure obtained from a population.

• Statistic: Characteristic or measure obtained from a sample.

• Sampling: The process or method of sample selection from the

population.
• Sample size: The number of elements or observation to be included
in the sample.
• Variable: It is an item of interest that can take on many different
numerical values.

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Types of Variables and Measurement Scales

A variable is a characteristic or attribute that can assume different

values in different persons, places, or things.
Examples :
age
 diastolic blood pressure
heart rate
the height of adult males
 the weights of preschool children
gender of medical laboratory students
marital status of instructors at Jimma University
ethnic group of patients
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 Types of Variables/Data

A. On the basis of information contained by the data

1.Qualitative Variables/data
 Non-numeric variables and can't be measured.
Examples: gender, religious affiliation, and state of birth, marital status of
patients,
2. Quantitative Variables/data
 numerical variables and can be measured. E.g. balance in
checking account, number of children in family, number of
patient in the given hospital, etc.
 Quantitative Variables can be either discrete (Assuming only
count values) or continuous, which can assume any value within
a specific range.
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 Discrete Variables
• are variables which assume a finite or countable number of possible values.

• are usually obtained by counting.

• is characterized by gaps or interruptions in the values that it can
assume.
• These gaps or interruptions indicate the absence of values between
particular values that the variable can assume.

Example:
• The number of daily admissions to a general hospital, and

• The number of decayed, missing or filled teeth per child in an elementary

school.

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 Continuous Variables

•are variables which assume an infinite number of possible values between

any two specific values.
• are usually obtained by measurement.

• does not possess the gaps or interruptions characteristic of a

discrete variable.

Example:
•Weight, age, length, temperature, speed, salary and mark of students

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 Types of Data

B. On the basis of the measurement scales :

1.The nominal data

 Only "naming" and classifying with no rank between the observations
is possible.
 When numbers are assigned to categories, it is only for coding
purposes and it does not provide a sense of size.

Example: Sex of a person (M, F), eye color (e.g. brown, blue), religion
(Muslim, Christian), place of residence (urban, rural) etc.

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2. Ordinal scale
 Categorization and ranking (ordering) observations is possible.

 We can talk of greater than or less than and it conveys meaning to the
value but;
 Impossible to express the real difference between measurements in
numerical terms.

Examples: Socio-economic status (very low, low, medium, high, very high),
severity (mild, moderate, sever), blood pressure (very low, low, high, very
high etc.

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3. Interval Scale
– Possible to categorize, rank and tell the real distance between any two
measurements.
– There is no fixed zero (meaningful) or Zero is not absolute.

Examples:
 Body temperature in OF or OC (measured in degrees). It is meaningful to say
the difference between 30oC & 40 oC and 25oC & 35oC is equal (i.e. 10 oC).
 IQ of students in the class.

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4. Ratio scale
– The highest level of measurement scale, characterized by the
fact that equality of ratios as well as equality of intervals can
be determined.
– There is a true zero point. i.e. zero is absolute.

Example: volume, height, weight, length, number of items, etc .

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C. On the basis of their source :

1. Primary data
 Data generated for the first time primarily/originally for the
study in question.

2. Secondary data
 Data obtained from other pre-existing/ priorly collected
sources.

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 Exercise-1

The following are list of different attributes/ variables or data. Classify the
variables/data in to different measurement scales.

1. Your checking account number as a name for your account.

2. Your score on statistics test as a measure of your knowledge of statistics.

3. A response to the statement "Abortion is a woman's right" where "Strongly

Disagree" = 1, "Disagree" = 2, "No Opinion" = 3, "Agree" = 4, and "Strongly
Agree" = 5, as a measure of attitude toward abortion.

4. Times for swimmers to complete a 50-meter race

5. Months of the year as September, October…

6. Economic status of a family when classified as low, middle and upper classes.

7. Blood type of individuals as A, B, AB and O.

8. Regions of Ethiopia as region 1, region 2, region 3… 21