Rivera Kevin, Ahn Sam S
Emergency Medicine, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, USA.
Surgery, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, USA.
Cureus. 2025 Jun 29;17(6):e86957. doi: 10.7759/cureus.86957. eCollection 2025 Jun.
Philosophical frameworks are rarely made explicit in clinical research, yet they underlie decisions at every stage of study design. This technical report presents a case example of how a logical positivist epistemology, which emphasized observable data, inductive generalization, and methodological disinterestedness, was intentionally applied to a vascular imaging study involving duplex ultrasound and venography in the diagnosis of pelvic vein compression syndromes. While the focus is on imaging, the relevance of epistemological transparency extends broadly to clinical trials, diagnostic tests, and AI-driven decision support. The study's design, data abstraction, and analytic processes were grounded in a transparent philosophical foundation, as documented in the author's original thesis. This report outlines the methodological structure, defends the choice of positivism, compares competing frameworks, and reflects on how epistemology can shape research validity.
哲学框架在临床研究中很少被明确阐述,然而它们却在研究设计的每个阶段的决策中起着基础作用。本技术报告呈现了一个案例,展示了一种逻辑实证主义认识论是如何被有意应用于一项血管成像研究的,该认识论强调可观察数据、归纳概括和方法论上的无偏见性,此研究涉及使用双功超声和静脉造影来诊断盆腔静脉压迫综合征。虽然重点是成像,但认识论透明度的相关性广泛延伸至临床试验、诊断测试以及人工智能驱动的决策支持。如作者原始论文中所记录的那样,该研究的设计、数据提取和分析过程都建立在一个透明的哲学基础之上。本报告概述了方法结构,为实证主义的选择进行辩护,比较了相互竞争的框架,并思考了认识论如何塑造研究的有效性。