Obstetrics Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Obstetrics, including details on caesarean delivery, child birth, labour.

Decision analysis in obstetrics and gynecology.

Grobman WA

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Northwestern University Medical School, Chicago, Illinois, USA. w-grobman@northwestern.edu

Decision analysis is a type of study design that can help to explicitly compare different medical choices and provide additional perspective to information provided by observational and interventional studies. This review will detail the circumstances under which decision analysis is most appropriate to use and the conceptual approach to the development of a decision model. TARGET AUDIENCE: Obstetricians & Gynecologists, Family Physicians. LEARNING OBJECTIVES: After completion of this article, the reader should be able to summarize that decision analysis will: help to compare different medical choices; supply additional perspectives to information provided by observational and interventional studies; and allow comparison of medical strategies that involve health outcomes, cost, or combined cost-effectiveness measures.

Published 21 August 2006 in Obstet Gynecol Surv, 61(9): 602-7.
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