IB Biology Exam Prep

Category - Biology

A story in a newspaper reports that post-surgical patients who received a type of alternative therapy involving light touching of the body report less severe pain than those who did not receive the therapy. The story concludes that this therapy should be adopted in all hospitals. Which information would be most useful to a reader in assessing the validity of this conclusion?
  1. The percentage of patients in all hospitals who report that they have experienced severe pain after undergoing surgery.
  2. The estimated cost to hospitals of providing the alternative therapy to all of their postsurgical patients.
  3. The percentage of patients reporting reduced pain after receiving other widely used treatments such as traditional massage or talking with staff.
  4. The level of pain reported by post-surgical patients before and after they received the alternative therapy.
Explanation
Correct Response: C. If hospitals are to adopt the alternative therapy to reduce post-surgical pain, the most useful method to assess the usefulness of this treatment would be to know whether the alternative therapy is at least as effective as more traditional methods of pain reduction. Having information about the percentage of patients reporting reduced pain after receiving other forms of treatment would allow this assessment to be made. Information about the percentage of patients in all hospitals who experienced severe pain after surgery (A), the cost of the alternative therapy (B), and the level of pain reported pre-and post-alternative therapy (D) would not be helpful in determining if the alternative therapy was as effective in reducing pain as other treatment methods and, therefore, whether the therapy should be used in all hospitals.
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