Confidence Intervals: Precision Before Drama
Interpret confidence intervals as precision and uncertainty around an epidemiologic estimate.
The interval is not fine print; it is the uncertainty statement. A confidence interval helps you judge how precise an estimate is. In practice, epidemiologists often treat a 95% confidence interval as the range of values consistent with the study data. How To Read It Start with width. A narrow interval means the estimate is relatively precise. A wide interval means you should be cautious, even when the point estimate looks dramatic. For ratios, compare the interval with 1.0. If the interval includes 1.0, the data are compatible with no relative difference under the usual null comparison. What It Does…
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