Book excerpt: While veterinary medicine has always valued the concepts and methods of epidemiology, they are virtually inseparable in today’s clinical practice. With access to an ever-expanding number of journals, as well as countless Internet sources, more and more veterinarians are practicing evidence-based medicine. This is defined as the process of systematically finding, appraising, and adopting research findings as the primary basis for clinical decisions. “An underlying premise of the book is that patient-based research is epidemiologic research....It logically follows that the users of this information, veterinary students and practitioners, be skilled in its application to patient care.” – from the preface Veterinary Clinical Epidemiology, Third Edition focuses on developing a deeper understanding of epidemiology and exemplifies how an improved capacity for interpreting and critiquing available literature ultimately leads to improved patient care. In preparing this edition, Ronald Smith, a highly respected epidemiologist, practitioner, and educator, has entirely updated his earlier work to reflect those changes that have dramatically altered the practice of veterinary medicine over the last ten years. New to the third edition: · Numerous updated examples of the application of epidemiology in clinical practice · Expanded journal representation to include a larger selection of international research · Increased coverage of hypothesis testing, survey design, sampling and epidemiologic conceptsrelated to the practice of evidence-based medicine · Revised and updated information on diagnostic testing, risk assessment, causality, and the use of statistics Veterinary Clinical Epidemiology, Third Edition provides practitioners and researchers with the knowledge and tools to understand, critically assess, and make use of the medical literature that is vital to the treatment of animal patients.