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`p|SSN 2005-6419 - e|SSN 2005-7563
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`dummm
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`Korean Journal ofAnesthe-siology
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`error of the mean
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`Standard deviation and standard
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`Dong Kyu Leel, Iunyong Inz, and Sangseok Lee3
`
`Department ofAnesthesiology and Pain Medicine, 1Korea University Guro Hospital, Seoul, 2Dongguk University
`Ilsan Medical Center, Goyang 3Sanggye Paik Hospital, Inje University College ofMedicine, Seoul, Korea
`
`In most clinical and experimental studies, the standard deviation (SD) and the estimated standard error of the mean (SEM)
`are used to present the characteristics of sample data and to explain statistical analysis results. However, some authors oc-
`casionally muddle the distinctive usage between the SD and SEM in medical literature. Because the process of calculating
`the SD and SEM includes different statistical inferences, each of them has its own meaning. SD is the dispersion of data in
`a normal distribution. In other words, SD indicates how accurately the mean represents sample data. However the mean-
`ing of SEM includes statistical inference based on the sampling distribution. SEM is the SD of the theoretical distribution
`of the sample means (the sampling distribution). While either SD or SEM can be applied to describe data and statistical re-
`sults, one should be aware of reasonable methods with which to use SD and SEM. We aim to elucidate the distinctions be-
`
`tween SD and SEM and to provide proper usage guidelines for both, which summarize data and describe statistical results.
`
`Key Words: Standard deviation, Standard error of the mean
`
`A data is said to follow a normal distribution when the values
`
`of the data are dispersed evenly around one representative value.
`A normal distribution is a prerequisite for a parametric statistical
`analysis [1]. The mean in a normally distributed data represents
`the central tendency of the values of the data. However, the mean
`alone is not sufficient when attempting to explain the shape of
`the distribution; therefore, many medical literatures employ the
`standard deviation (SD) and the standard error of the mean (SEM)
`along with the mean to report statistical analysis results [2].
`The objective of this article is to state the differences with
`regard to the use of the SD and SEM, which are used in descrip-
`tive and statistical analysis of normally distributed data, and to
`
`Corresponding author: Dong Kyu Lee, M.D., Ph.D.
`Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Korea University
`Guro Hospital, 148, Gurodong—ro, Guro—gu, Seoul 152-703, Korea
`Tel: 82-2-2626-3237, Fax: 82-2-2626-1437
`E—mail: entopic@naver.com
`ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000—0002—4068—2363
`
`Received: April 2, 2015.
`Revised: 1st, April 21, 2015; 2nd, April 24, 2015; 3rd, May 6, 2015.
`Accepted: May 7, 2015.
`
`Korean I Anesthesiol 2015 June 68(3): 220-223
`http://dx.doi.org/10.4097/kjae.2015.68.3220
`
`propose a standard against which statistical analysis results in
`medial literatures can be evaluated.
`
`Medical studies begin by establishing a hypothesis about a
`population and extracting a sample from the population to test
`the hypothesis. The extracted sample will take a normal distribu-
`tion if the sampling process was conducted via an appropriate
`randomization method with a sufficient sample size. As with all
`normally distributed data, the characteristics of the sample are
`represented by the mean, variance or SD. The variance or SD
`includes the differences of the observed values from the mean
`
`(Fig. 1); thus, these values represent the variation of the data
`[1—3]. For instance, if the observed values are scattered closely
`around the mean value, the variance — as well as the SD — are
`
`reduced. However, the variance can confuse the interpretation
`of the data because it is computed by squaring the units of the
`observed values. Hence, the SD, which uses the same units used
`
`with the mean, is more appropriate [3] (Equations 1 and 2).
`Sample: x1, x2, x3, ..., xn (sample size = n)
`1.1 x.
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`. . .. Equation 2
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`@ This is an open—access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non—Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/
`licenses/by—nc/4.0/), which permits unrestricted non—commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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`Copyright (Q the Korean Society of Anesthesiologists, 201 5
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`Online access in http://ekja.org
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`|nnoPharma Exhibit 1092.0001
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`Leeetal.
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`Fig. 1. Process of data description. First,
`we gather raw data from the population
`by means of randomization (A). We then
`arrange the each value according to the scale
`(frequency distribution); we can presume
`the shape of the distribution (probability
`distribution) and can calculate the mean and
`standard deviation (B). Using these mean and
`standard deviation, we produce a model of
`the normal distribution (C). This distribution
`represents the characteristics of the data we
`gathered and is the normal distribution, with
`which statistical inferences can be made (ic:
`mean, SD: standard deviation, x,-: observation
`value, n: sample size).
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`KOREA JANEST-|ES|OL
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`As mentioned previously, using the SD concurrently with the
`mean can more accurately estimate the variation in a normally
`distributed data. In other words, a normally distributed statisti-
`cal model can be achieved by examining the mean and the SD
`of the data [1] (Fig. 1, Equations 1 and 2). In such models, ap-
`proximately 68.7% of the observed values are placed within one
`SD from the mean, approximately 95.4% of the observed values
`are arranged within two SDs from the mean, and about 99.7%
`of the observed values are positioned within three SDs from the
`mean [1,4]. For this reason, most medical literatures report their
`samples in the form of the mean and SD [5].
`The sa111ple as referred to in medical literature is a set of
`observed values from a population. An experiment must be
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`conducted on the entire population to acquire a more accurate
`confirmation of a hypothesis, but it is essentially impossible to
`survey an entire population. As a result, an appropriate sampling
`process — a process of extracting a sample that represents the
`characteristics of a population — is essential to acquire reliable
`results. For this purpose, an appropriate sample size is deter-
`mined during the research planning stage and the sampling is
`done via a randomization method. Nevertheless, the extracted
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`sample is still a part of the population; thus, the sample mean is
`an estimated value of the population mean. When the samples
`of the same sample size are repeatedly and randomly taken from
`the sa111e population, they are different each other because of
`sampling variation as well as sample means (Fig. 2, Level B). The
`
`Online access in http://ekja.org
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`221
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`|nnoPharma Exhibit 1092.0002
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`SD and SEM
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`A
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`The population
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`/
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`l
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`SJLLJX»
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`Z1, SD1
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`C \
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`Sam ' g distribution (X112,
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`.. XN)
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`Estimated Standard Error of the Mean (SEM) =
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`«/5
`95% Confidence Inverval :2 —(1.96 x SEM) ~42 + (1.96 x SEM)
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`SD
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`VOL. 68, NO. 3, JUNE 2015
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`Fig. 2. Process of statistical inference.
`Level A indicates the population. In most
`experiments, we only obtain one set of
`sample data from the population using
`randomization (Level B); the mean and
`standard deviation are calculated from
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`sample data we have. For statistical infe-
`rence purposes, we assume that there are
`several sample data sets from the population
`(Level B); the means of each sample data set
`produce the sampling distribution (Level C).
`Using this sampling distribution, statistical
`analysis can be conducted. In this situation,
`the estimated standard error of the mean
`or the 95% confidence interval has an
`
`important role during the statistical analysis
`process (Kc: mean, SD: standard deviation, n:
`sample size, N: number of sample data sets
`extracted from population).
`
`distribution of different sample means, which is achieved via
`repeated sampling processes, is referred to as the sampling dis-
`tribution and it takes a normal distribution pattern (Fig. 2, Level
`C) [1,6,7]. Therefore, the SD of the sampling distribution can be
`computed; this value is referred to as the SEM [1,6,7]. The SEM
`is dependent on the variation in the population and the number
`of the extracted samples. A large variation in the population
`causes a large difference in the sample means, ultimately result-
`ing in a larger SEM. However, as more samples are extracted from
`the population, the sample means move closer to the population
`mean, which results in a smaller SEM. In short, the SEM is an in-
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`dicator of how close the sample mean is to the population mean [7].
`In reality, however, only one sample is extracted from the popula-
`tion. Therefore, the SEM is estimated using the SD and a sample
`size (Estimated SEM). The SEM computed by a statistical program
`is an estimated value calculated via this process [5] (Equation 3).
`
`Estimated Standard Error ofthe Mean (SEM) = % Equation 3
`
`A confidence interval is set to illustrate the population mean
`intuitively. A 95% confidence interval is the most common [3,7].
`The SEM of a sampling distribution is estimated from one sam-
`ple, and a confidence interval is determined from the SEM (Fig. 2,
`Level C). In the strict sense, the 95% confidence interval provides
`the information about a range within which the 95% sample
`means will fall, it is not a range for the population mean with
`95% confidence. For example, a 95% confidence interval signifies
`that when 100 sample means are calculated from 100 samples
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`from a population, 95 of them are included within the said confi-
`dence interval and 5 are placed outside of the confidence interval.
`In other words, it does not mean that there is a 95% probability
`that the population mean lies within the 95% confidence interval.
`When statistically comparing data sets, researchers estimate
`the population of each sample and examine whether they are
`identical. The SEM — not the SD, which represents the variation
`in the sample — is used to estimate the population mean (Fig. 2)
`[4,8,9]. Via this process, researchers conclude that the sample
`used in their studies appropriately represents the population
`within the error range specified by the pre—set significance level
`[4,6,8].
`The SEM is smaller than the SD, as the SEM is estimated usu-
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`ally the SD divided by the square root of the sample size (Equa-
`tions 2 and 3). For this reason, researchers are tempted to use the
`SEM when describing their samples. It is acceptable to use either
`the SEM or SD to compare two different groups if the sample
`sizes of the two groups are equal; however, the sample size must
`be stated in order to deliver accurate information. For example,
`when a population has a large amount of variation, the SD of an
`extracted sample from this population must be large. However,
`the SEM will be small if the sample size is deliberately increased.
`In such cases, it would be easy to misinterpret the population
`from using the SEM in descriptive statistics. Such cases are com-
`mon in medical research, because the variables in medical re-
`
`search impose many possible biases originated from inter— and
`intra—individual variations originated from underlying general
`conditions of the patients and so on. When interpreting the SD
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`KOREAN J AN ESTH ESIOL
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`Lee et ol.
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`and SEM, however, the exact meaning and purposes of the SD
`and SEM should be considered to deliver correct information.
`
`[3,4,6,7,10].
`
`We examined 36 clinical or experimental studies published
`in Volume 6, Numbers 1 through 6 of the Korean Journal ofAn-
`esthesiology and found that a few of the studies inappropriately
`used the SD and SEM. First, examining the descriptive statistics,
`we found that all of the studies used the mean and SD or the
`
`observed number and percentage. One study suggested a 95%
`confidence interval; this particular study appropriately stated
`the sample size along the confidence interval, offering a clearer
`understanding of the data suggested in the study [11]. Among
`the 36 studies examined, only one study described the results
`of a normality test [12]. Second, all 36 studies used the SD, the
`observed number or the percentage to describe their statistical
`results. One study did not specify what the values in the graphs
`and tables represent (i.e., the mean, SD or interqaartile range).
`There was also a study that used the mean in the text but showed
`an interqaartile range in the graphs. Sixteen studies used either
`the observed number or the percentage, and most of them re-
`ported their results without a confidence interval. Only two stud-
`ies stated confidence intervals, but only one of those two studies
`
`appropriately used the confidence interval [13]. As shown above,
`we found that some of the studies have inappropriately used the
`SD, SEM and confidence intervals in reporting their statistical
`results. Such instances of the inappropriate use of statistics must
`be meticulously screened during manuscript reviews and evalu-
`ations because they may hamper an accurate comprehension of
`a study’s data.
`In conclusion, the SD reflects the variation in a normally
`distributed data, and the SEM represents the variation in the
`sample means of a sampling distribution. With this in mind, it is
`pertinent to use the SD (paired with a normality test) to describe
`the characteristics of a sample; however, the SEM or confidence
`interval can be used for the same purpose if the sample size is
`specified. The SEM, paired with the sample size, is more useful
`when reporting statistical results because it allows an intuitive
`comparison between the estimated populations via graphs or
`tables.
`
`ORCID
`
`Iunyong ln, http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7403-4287
`Sangseok Lee, http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7023-3668
`
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