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Medical Informatics pp 76–131Cite as

Medical Decision-Making: Probabilistic Medical Reasoning

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Part of the book series: Health Informatics ((HI))

Abstract

Because clinical data are imperfect and outcomes of treatment are uncertain, health professionals often are faced with difficult choices. In this chapter, we introduce probabilistic medical reasoning, an approach that can help healthcare providers to deal with the uncertainty inherent in many medical decisions. Medical decisions are made by a variety of methods; our approach is neither necessary nor appropriate for all decisions. Throughout the chapter, we provide simple clinical examples that illustrate a broad range of problems for which probabilistic medical reasoning does provide valuable insight.

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Suggested Readings

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Authors
  1. Douglas K. Owens
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  2. Harold C. Sox
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Informatics in Medicine, Science Vanderbilt Clinic, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center, New York, New York, 10032-3720, USA

    Edward H. Shortliffe MD, PhD, FACP, FACMI (Professor and Chair, Professor of Medicine and Computer Science) (Professor and Chair, Professor of Medicine and Computer Science)

  2. New York, NY, USA

    Leslie E. Perreault MS

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© 2001 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Cite this chapter

Owens, D.K., Sox, H.C. (2001). Medical Decision-Making: Probabilistic Medical Reasoning. In: Shortliffe, E.H., Perreault, L.E. (eds) Medical Informatics. Health Informatics. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-21721-5_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-21721-5_3

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4899-0517-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-0-387-21721-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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