Salk Vaccine Relative Risk Analysis Case Study

This document is a case study analyzing the relative risk associated with the Salk polio vaccine. It outlines the historical context of polio in the 1950s, detailing a large-scale study conducted in 1954 involving nearly two million children. The study comprised two parts: a randomized experiment with a double-blind trial and a cohort study where children received the vaccine or were placed in a control group. The analysis focuses on determining the vaccine's effectiveness and quantifying its impact on polio rates. Data from the study indicates that the polio rate in the control group was approximately 0.0539%, while the vaccinated group had a rate of 0.0252%. The relative risk calculated from the cohort study was found to be 2.137, suggesting that the vaccine significantly reduces the chances of contracting polio. The study also discusses the limitations of cohort studies, including biases and the inability to measure placebo effects, while providing statistical insights into the effectiveness of the vaccine.