Epistemic causality and evidence-based medicine

Causal claims in biomedical contexts are ubiquitous albeit they are not
always made explicit. This paper addresses the question of what causal claims mean in the
context of disease. It is argued that in medical contexts causality ought to be interpreted
according to the epistemic theory. The epistemic theory offers an alternative to traditional
accounts that cash out causation either in terms of "difference-making" relations or in terms
of mechanisms. According to the epistemic approach, causal claims tell us about which
inferences (e.g., diagnoses and prognoses) are appropriate, rather than about the presence
of some physical causal relation analogous to distance or gravitational attraction. It is shown
that the epistemic theory has important consequences for medical practice, in particular with
regard to evidence-based causal assessment.

Jaar van publicatie:2011

Trefwoorden:medicine, causality, Bradford Hill