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Table 2 Calculations to determine whether to treat the whole population or just a high-risk group.

From: Selecting patients for randomized trials: a systematic approach based on risk group

Strategy

Sensitivity

Specificity

Intervention rate

Event rate

Decrease in event rate (benefit)

Net benefit (benefit – intervention rate ÷ NNTt)

Treat none

0%

100%

0.0%

20.00%

0%

0

Treat high-risk (risk 10% +)

91%

57%

52.60%

15.45%

4.55%

0.02956

Treat high-risk (risk 50% +)

47%

96%

12.60%

17.65%

2.35%

0.01968

Treat all

100%

0%

100.0%

15.00%

5.00%

0.01970

  1. The relative risk of the intervention is 0.75, the NNTt is 33 and the event rate in the absence of intervention is 20%. The decrease in event rate is the event rate in the population in the absence of intervention minus the event rate in the population when individuals meeting the high-risk definition receive intervention.
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Trials

ISSN: 1745-6215