The Case for Intervention Bias in the Practice of Medicine

Bias is an inclination to present or hold a partial perspective at the expense ofpossibly equal or more valid alternatives. In this paper, we present a series ofconditional arguments to prove that intervention bias exists in the practice ofmedicine. We then explore its potential causes, consequences, and criticisms. Weuse the term to describe the bias on the part of physicians and the medicalcommunity to intervene, whether it is with drugs, diagnostic tests, non-invasiveprocedures, or surgeries, when not intervening would be a reasonablealternative. The recognition of intervention bias in medicine is criticallyimportant given today’s emphasis on providing high-value care and reducingunnecessary and potentially harmful interventions.