GLOSSARY
OF TERMS
     
     
E
E-mail
(electronic
mail)
Allows users on the Internet and other networks (both local
and global) to communicate electronically by sending messages
to individuals, or groups of individuals. E-mail is, for most
people, cheaper and faster than other communication channels
such as fax and standard mail.
Economic
analysis
(synonym: economic evaluation)
Comparison of the costs and outcomes of alternative health
care interventions. See cost-benefit
analysis, cost-effectiveness
analysis and cost-utility
analysis.
Effect
size
- A
generic term for the estimate of effect for a study.
- A
dimensionless measure of effect that is typically used for
continuous data when different scales (e.g. for measuring
pain) are used to measure an outcome and is usually
defined as the difference in means between the intervention
and control groups divided by the standard deviation
of the control or both groups. See standardized
mean difference.
Effectiveness
The
extent to which a specific intervention, when used under ordinary
circumstances, does what it is intended to do. Clinical
trials that assess effectiveness are sometimes called
management trials. See also intention-to-treat.
Efficacy
The
extent to which an intervention produces a beneficial result
under ideal conditions. Clinical trials that assess efficacy
are sometimes called explanatory trials and are restricted
to participants who fully co-operate.
EMBASE
(Excerpta Medica database)
A European-based electronic database of pharmacological
and biomedical literature covering 3,500 journals from 110 countries.
Years of coverage: 1974 to present.
Empirical
Empirical
results are based on experience (or observation) rather than
on reasoning alone.
Epidemiology
The
study of the distribution and determinants of health-related
states or events in specified populations.
Estimate
of effect (synonym:
treatment effect)
In studies of the effects of healthcare, the observed relationship
between an intervention and an outcome expressed as, for
example, a number needed to treat, odds
ratio,
risk
difference,
relative
risk,
standardized
mean difference,
or weighted mean difference.
Event
rate
The
proportion of participants in a group in whom an event is observed.
Thus, if out of 100 patients the event (e.g. a stroke)
is observed in 32, the event rate is 0.32.
Evidence-based
healthcare
The
conscientious use of current best evidence in making decisions
about the care of individual patients or the delivery
of health services.
External
peer reviewer
A
person with relevant content, methodological or user expertise
who critically examines reviews in her/his area of expertise.
External
validity (synonyms:
external validity, generalisability, relevance, transferability)
The degree to which the results of an observation hold true
in other settings. See also validity.
Extramural
Outside
(the walls or boundaries of) a place or institution. Refers
to "external" sources of support (such as funding)
as opposed to "internal" (intramural)
support.
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