A 65-year-old man with a history of congestive heart failure is admitted to the cardiac care unit after experiencing chest discomfort and hypotension. An intra-arterial line is inserted to monitor blood pressure directly. His intra-arterial blood pressure measurements are 75, 110, 80, 90, 75, and 110 mm Hg. Which of the following blood pressure values indicates the mean?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Eductional Objective: It is critical to comprehend the distinction between the median, mean, and mode, which are three measures of central tendency. The median of an ordered dataset is the number that divides the data's right and left halves. Before calculating the median, the dataset MUST be sorted. If the number of observations in the dataset is even, calculating the median entails adding the middle two values and dividing the sum by two.
In this scenario, the sorted dataset is 75, 75, 80, 90, 110, 110. There are a total of six observations, which is an even number. The median value divides the dataset in half; it ranges from 80 to 90 (3 values on the left and 3 values on the right). The median is ( 80+90)/2 = 85 mm Hg. Now, assume one of the values is missing and the ordered dataset includes the following 5 observations (odd number of observations): {75, 80, 90, 110, 110}. In this case, the median value would be 90 mm Hg, which splits the dataset in half (2 values on the left and 2 values on the right)

A 65-Year-Old Man with a History of Congestive Heart Failure