Evaluating Medical Claims and Evidence Flashcards

1️⃣ Familiarise yourself with the flashcards:

  • Look through all the flashcards to see what's on both sides.
  • Make sure you understand the information on each card. If something's unclear, click the link to the revision notes at the bottom of the page for more details.

2️⃣ Test yourself:

  • Look at the question or prompt on each card and try to remember the answer before flipping it over.
  • Check the answer and make a note of any cards you find challenging and need to go over more.

3️⃣ Consistently Review and Practice:

  • Use spaced repetition: spend more time on the cards you struggle with and go over them more often.
  • Regularly review all the flashcards to help you better understand and retain the information over time.

Note: We may include questions that have multiple correct answers. It's useful to remember specific examples to understand these concepts better.

PERSONALISED 1-TO-1 TUTORING

Need more help on this topic? Get 1-to-1 support

Get support with clear explanations, practice and feedback (Ages 5 to 16).

  • DBS-checked tutors
  • Flexible times
  • Parents can be updated

Want an ad-free experience? Subscribe to remove ads

What is a medical claim?

A medical claim is a statement that says a treatment, food or habit has an effect on health.

What do we mean by scientific evidence for a medical claim?

Scientific evidence is data from careful tests or studies that show whether the claim is likely to be true.

Why is a large sample size important in a medical study?

A large sample size means many people were tested. This makes the results more likely to show what is really true and not just due to chance.

What is a control group in a medical trial, and why is it useful when judging a claim?

A control group is a group that does not get the treatment. Comparing them with the treated group shows if the treatment really makes a difference.

What is bias in a medical study?

Bias is anything that makes the results unfair or one-sided. It means the results do not show the true effect of the treatment.

Why is it important that other scientists can repeat a medical study?

If other scientists repeat the study and get similar results, the evidence is more reliable. This makes us more confident the results are not a mistake or due to chance.

What does correlation mean in health data?

Correlation means that two things change in a similar way, such as smoking and lung disease both increasing together.

Why does correlation not always mean that one thing causes another?

Two things can be linked for another reason, or by chance. We need more evidence to show that one really causes the other.

Why should we be careful when judging health claims in adverts, news or on social media?

These sources may leave out data or only show part of a study. They may be trying to attract attention or sell something, so their claims may not be reliable.

Why are personal stories not strong evidence that a treatment works?

Personal stories are based on one or a few people. They may be due to chance or other factors, and they do not test many people in a fair way.

What is peer review, and how does it help us judge medical evidence?

Peer review is when other expert scientists check a study before it is published. They look for errors and weak points, which helps make the evidence more trustworthy.

In medicine, what is meant by risk?

Risk is the chance that something harmful will happen, such as a side effect or a disease.