title: A guide to the appraisal of research: 2. What's in a number?
abstract: This review explores the nature of numbers in dental research, their importance and, at a basic level, how these are handled. This includes the important numbers that practitioners should look at when appraising research and discussion of some commonly found statistical terms.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In order to apply evidence-based dentistry in clinical practice, dentists should have an understanding of the basic numbers reported in dental research, and an appreciation of this should allow them to identify which papers are most valuable to inform their clinical practice.
authors.affiliation: University of Birmingham Dental Hospital and School, St Chad's Queensway, Birmingham B4 6NN, UK.
authors.forename: Geoff
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bateman
authors.forename: F J Trevor
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Burke
authors.forename: Shuva
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Saha
mesh_terms: D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D018865:Dental Research / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055094:Evidence-Based Dentistry / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005544:Forecasting; D006801:Humans; D010352:Patient Dropouts / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011336:Probability; D012107:Research Design / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018401:Sample Size; D013997:Time Factors