[A review of the statistical methods used in the journal of prosthetic dentistry].
OBJECTIVE
To understand the present condition of statistical methods used in the Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry.


METHODS
The statistical methods used in 448 treatises (from 2001 to 2003) in the journals were reviewed, classified and analysed.


RESULTS
The utilization rates of statistical methods were 28.06%, 48.34% and 51.02% from 2001 to 2003,respectively. The utilization rate of statistical methods was increasing significantly with year (chi2=29.453,P<0.001). The main statistical methods were analysis of variance (ANOVA), multiple comparison, nonparametric test, t-test, linear regression and correlation and chi2 test.


CONCLUSIONS
The utilization rates of sophisticated statistical methods and the proportion of using more than two kinds of statistical tests were all higher than that in the medical journals published in China.
Teaching Department of Preventive Medicine, Medical College of Tongji University, Shanghai 200072, China.
Yu
Y
Wang
Jin-Ming
JM
Yu
Jian-Ping
JP
Geng
Jia-Wei
JW
Zheng
D006801:Humans; D019242:Oral Medicine; D010506:Periodicals as Topic / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011476:Prosthodontics; D013223:Statistics as Topic / Q000379:methods*