[Evidence-based medicine. Input of epidemiologic studies].
Epidemiological studies, more specifically those related to analytical epidemiology are a major determinant of evidence-based medicine. When classifying the value of the different epidemiological studies, based on their level of causality, cohort studies are ranked higher than case-control studies, mainly due to the fact that they allow direct collection of information on exposition to risk factors and health consequences. However, case-control studies can also provide an important information, if a specific effort is dedicated to the analyses of the circumstances of the exposition. Meta-analysis increases, by pooling them, the statistical power of individual studies of limited size. Meta-analysis can also be considered as an important source of evidence in the perspective of evidence-based medicine.
Reginster
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Betz
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D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015331:Cohort Studies; D016021:Epidemiologic Studies; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006801:Humans; D015201:Meta-Analysis as Topic; D012107:Research Design