Patients Cured Assumption: Binomial Distribution

For FDA approval of ClearView, Vision Research must conduct a controlled test on a sample of 100 patients for one year. Vision Research expects that the FDA will grant an approval if 20% or more of the patients tested are cured (show corrected vision) after taking ClearView for one year. Vision Research is encouraged by their preliminary testing, which shows a success rate of around 25%.

Vision Research selects the binomial distribution to describe the uncertainties in this situation because the binomial distribution describes the random number of successes (25) in a fixed number of trials (100).

This assumption is already defined.

  To examine the assumption cell for patients cured, use the following steps:

  1. Click cell C10.

  2. Select Define Assumption,Define Assumption button.

    The Binomial Distribution dialog opens as shown in Figure 116, Binomial Distribution Dialog.

    Figure 116. Binomial Distribution Dialog

    This figure displays the Binomial distribution dialog.

    The binomial distribution has two parameters: Probability and Trials. Because Vision Research experienced a 25% success rate during preliminary testing, the Probability parameter is set to 0.25 to show the likelihood of success.

    Note:

    You can express probabilities either as decimals between 0 and 1, such as 0.03, or as whole numbers followed by the percent sign, such as 3%.

    Because the FDA expects Vision Research to test 100 people, the Trials parameter is set to 100. When you run the simulation, Crystal Ball generates random integers between 0 and 100, simulating the number of patients that would be cured in the FDA test.

  3. Click OK to return to the worksheet.