The danger of relying on the interpretation of p-values in single studies: Irreproducibility of results from clinical studies

P-values are a common component and outcome measure in most every published observational or randomized clinical trial. However, junior faculty, fellows, and residents have little or no training in statistics and are forced to rely on the interpretation of results based solely on the authors or secondary sources. This education gap applies to an even larger audience including many physicians, researchers, journalists, and policy makers. That is a dangerous approach. Statistical analysis of data often involves the calculation and reporting of the p-value as statistically significant or not, without much further thought.
Source: Progress in Pediatric Cardiology - Category: Cardiology Authors: Source Type: research