ICC COLUMN: The Voice of the Patient


Post hoc ergo propter hoc

Lawrence Grouse

Abstract

The Greeks and Romans recognized this fallacy in argument thousands of years ago. Because one event follows another event does not mean that the first event caused the second (post hoc ergo propter hoc). However, in contemporary medical news this logic is not understood. This faulty reasoning is the most common cause of false and misleading conclusions of research results that are presented as medical news.

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