We’ll Find Our Answers in Randomized, Controlled Trials (RCTs)

I’m a numbers guy. I use numbers to understand the world. My background is in research, so when I want to understand an issue, I look at the primary research. If I can understand the researchers’ methodology, the data they collect, and how they draw their conclusions, I’ll understand the issue at a deeper, more fundamental level than news reports typically provide.

To understand flu shot effectiveness, I’m only going to assess double-blind, randomized controlled trials, the gold standard. These studies are more expensive to conduct but provide better results than observational studies. (I discuss the differences between these two types of studies in my post about the benefits of vitamins.)

The two influenza vaccination studies I’ll look at satisfy the above criteria and are listed in a section of references for health professionals on the CDC’s website. Presumably these studies make a good case, using trusted data. Along the way, we’ll use Minitab statistical software to analyze their data for ourselves.