Master of Pharmacy: Research and Biostatistics Flashcards
7 cards from real MPharm Master of Pharmacy practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Master of Pharmacy: Research and Biostatistics flashcards as text
In a pharmacogenomics study using genome-wide association (GWAS), what statistical threshold is typically applied to define significance?
Answer: p < 5×10⁻⁸
GWAS typically requires p < 5×10⁻⁸ to account for approximately one million independent tests performed across the genome (Bonferroni-corrected).
In a dose-response study, the EC₅₀ represents:
Answer: The drug concentration producing 50% of the maximal effect
EC₅₀ is the effective concentration required to produce 50% of the maximal pharmacological response and is a key PD parameter.
When a clinical trial's data safety monitoring board (DSMB) performs an interim analysis, they may use an O'Brien-Fleming boundary to:
Answer: Preserve the overall Type I error while allowing early stopping for efficacy
O'Brien-Fleming spending functions allocate alpha across interim looks, using very conservative early thresholds so the final alpha approximates the planned 0.05.
A pharmacy researcher wants to measure inter-rater reliability for a subjective adverse event severity scale. The most appropriate statistic is:
Answer: Cohen's kappa
Cohen's kappa measures agreement between two raters on categorical classifications beyond what is expected by chance.
In adaptive clinical trial designs, 'response-adaptive randomization' modifies:
Answer: Allocation probabilities based on accumulating outcome data
Response-adaptive randomization shifts allocation toward the better-performing arm as outcome data accumulate, increasing ethical efficiency.
Which pharmacokinetic parameter best reflects the total systemic drug exposure over time after a single dose?
Answer: Area under the concentration-time curve (AUC₀–∞)
AUC₀–∞ integrates the entire concentration-time profile from administration to infinity, representing total systemic drug exposure.
In meta-analysis, heterogeneity among studies is quantified using the I² statistic. An I² of 75% indicates:
Answer: High heterogeneity; a random-effects model is preferred over fixed-effects
I² ≥ 75% indicates high statistical heterogeneity, suggesting true variability in effect sizes across studies and favoring a random-effects model.