Hello,
I am working on a clinical project with two groups: monophasic and relapsing patients. The number of patients in each group is not the same. n = 28 for monophasic group and n = 15 for relapsing group.
I want to see whether the binding affinity to a specific protein is stronger/weaker/ same between both groups. I performed chi-square test and the test was significant.
However, it is essential to know that the time of sample collection of different patients of the same group is different.
To be clearer, here is an example:
In the monophasic group, there is a patient sample that has been collected once directly after the disease onset, but there are others that have been collected once after 3 years, or 4, or even 10. I have one sample for each patient, but the time of collection is different. This is also the case of the relapsing group.
Can you please guide me on the best statistical test to be used?
Based on your description, it seems like you are comparing the binding affinity to a specific protein between two groups: monophasic and relapsing patients. However, you have mentioned that the time of sample collection varies within each group. In this case, you need to account for the potential effect of time on the binding affinity when comparing the two groups.
One approach you can consider is to use analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). ANCOVA is an extension of the analysis of variance (ANOVA) that allows you to examine the effect of a categorical independent variable (group) while controlling for the effects of one or more continuous covariates (in this case, time of sample collection). ANCOVA can be used to assess whether there are differences in the binding affinity between the monophasic and relapsing groups while adjusting for the influence of time.
Here are the steps you can follow:
The results from the ANCOVA will help you determine whether there are significant differences in binding affinity between the two groups while accounting for the influence of time.
Thank you for you reply! Do you know if there are ANCOVA packages? I am a newbie in R studio and its still difficult for me.
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