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Difficulty: EasyEpidemiologic Study Designs

Match each clinical research scenario with the epidemiologic study design it best describes.

  • Patients hospitalized with acute pancreatitis and a similar group of patients without the disease are interviewed about their past alcohol consumption.Case-control study
  • A group of healthy college students is categorized by their vaping habits and followed for 10 years to determine the incidence of asthma in each group.Prospective cohort study
  • A survey is administered to 5,000 community adults to simultaneously assess their current body mass index (BMI) and the presence of hypertension.Cross-sectional study
  • Patients newly diagnosed with hypertension are randomly assigned to receive either medication A or medication B to evaluate blood pressure control over 6 months.Randomized controlled trial

Answer

Scenario 1 is a Case-control study; Scenario 2 is a Prospective cohort study; Scenario 3 is a Cross-sectional study; Scenario 4 is a Randomized controlled trial.
Each study design has fundamental defining characteristics. A case-control study groups by disease status and looks backward for exposure. A prospective cohort study groups by exposure status and looks forward for disease incidence. A cross-sectional study assesses exposure and disease at a single point in time. A randomized controlled trial experimentally assigns an intervention to evaluate its effect.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the first scenario to determine how subjects are grouped and the timing of the study.
Subjects are grouped by disease status (pancreatitis) and assessed for past exposure.
Grouping by outcome and looking backward defines a case-control study.
2
Evaluate the second scenario regarding student vaping habits.
Subjects are grouped by exposure (vaping) and followed forward in time for disease incidence.
Grouping by exposure and tracking patients forward over time defines a prospective cohort study.
3
Examine the third scenario using a community survey.
Exposure and outcome are measured simultaneously at one point in time.
Measuring prevalence without a time delay between exposure and outcome assessment is the hallmark of a cross-sectional study.
4
Assess the fourth scenario involving medication assignment.
The investigator randomly assigns the intervention to patients.
Experimental assignment of an intervention defines a randomized controlled trial.

Key Concept

Epidemiologic Study Designs
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Epidemiologic Study Designs

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