Glossary

A study design in which patients receive routine clinical care and researchers record the outcome. Observational studies can provide useful information but are considered less reliable than experimental studies such as randomised controlled trials. Some examples of observational studies are cohort studies and case-control studies. 

Relating to antenatal care.

Relating to the eye.

Abbreviation of a Latin term meaning every day.

Expresses how likely a person is to experience an event, compared to how likely the person is not to experience the event. An odds above 1 means that the event is more likely to happen than not.

Comparing one group with another, expresses differences in the odds of something happening. An odds ratio above 1 means something is more likely to happen in the group of interest; an odds ratio below 1 means it is less likely to happen. Similar to ‘relative risk’.  

Accumulation of fluid below the skin or in the cavities of the body.

The tube leading from the throat to the stomach.

Opportunistic infection.

Abbreviation of a Latin term meaning every morning.

Abbreviation of a Latin term meaning every night.

Participants in a clinical trial are only included in the final analysis if they complete the full course of treatment they were originally assigned to. See also ‘intent to treat analysis’.

A clinical trial where both the researcher and participants know who is taking the experimental treatment.

Specific infections which cause disease in someone with a damaged immune system.