The world of statistics through the eyes of a practising cardiac surgeon

In modern scientific literature, the dominant role of statistical rigor is undeniable. However, the methodology and the language behind this science is often forbidding and not surgeon friendly and hence often forces the average reader to skim through the details and jump to the conclusions section and if the P value is reported to be statistically significant, we regard the conclusions as valid.However, if we make friends with statistical techniques and try to understand it,the results can be gratifying. A surgeon having the ability to do his/her own analysis has a very powerful weapon on hand. Not just in publications but in actually improving outcomes of patient care.