What Does 5 2 Odds Mean
Written by Clay Smith
2.50 odds is 0.40 (or 40% if expressed as a percentage). This means that odds of 2.50 on any possible outcome imply that the chance of that outcome happening is roughly 40%. So if, for example, a tennis player is at 2.50 to win an upcoming match, the implication is that he has a 40% chance of actually winning that match.
Idiot’s Guide
What Does 5 To 2 Odds Mean
That’s right - I will be your guide. The good thing about having an idiot for a guide is that I have to make it simple to understand it myself, which means, hopefully, you will understand it as well.
Odds are not always exact. They are exact if you toss a coin, because the likelihood of heads or tails is the same. However, odds on a sporting event would not be exact, because no one knows for sure who is going to win or lose. NB: In this example, the line betting and total betting is cast at a decimal (e.g. 3.5) this means there is zero chance that the line can be split and that a refund is required. Parlay Betting Parlay betting is where you bet on a combination of teams to get the highest returns for your stake. Of course, betting the New York Yankees at -1.5 to bring down the odds from -190 to -110 isn’t too fun when they win 4-3 and you don’t cash a bet. Betting on the point spread is the most. The most common NFL spreads are usually set between about 2.5-10.5 points, but you will also almost always have games each week with spreads lower than 2.5 and higher than 10.5. In the event that the oddsmakers feel the game doesn’t need a spread, it would be set at 0 or what some call a pick’em (both teams are given even odds to win for.
Probability or Odds
Probability
Probability means the risk of an event happening divided by the total number of people at risk of having that event. I will use the example in a recent JAMA article. In a deck of 52 cards, there are 13 spades. So, the risk (or probability) of drawing a card randomly from the deck and getting spades is 13/52 = 0.25 = 25%. The numerator is the number of spades, and the denominator is the total number of cards.
Odds
Odds seems less intuitive. It is the ratio of the probability a thing will happen over the probability it won’t. In the spades example, the probability of drawing a spade is 0.25. The probability of not drawing a spade is 1 - 0.25. So the odds is 0.25/0.75 or 1:3 (or 0.33 or 1/3 pronounced 1 to 3 odds).
Moving back and forth
To go from odds to probability, simply take the numerator/(denominator + numerator). In the spades example, the odds of 1/3 is converted by taking 1/1+3 = 0.25 - and now we are back to probability. To go from probability to odds, simply take the numerator/(denominator-numerator). In the spades example, given that the probability of drawing a spade is 1/4, take 1/(4-1) = 1:3 odds or odds = 0.33.
Statistical Significance
If an odds ratio (OR) is 1, it means there is no association between the exposure and outcome. So, if the 95% confidence interval for an OR includes 1, it means the results are not statistically significant. Example, exposure to colored vs white Christmas lights was associated with an increase in jocularity score, OR = 1.2 (95%CI 0.98-1.45). Sorry, this is not statistically significant. Let’s just go with white lights…
Use
Either the OR or risk ratio (RR) could be used in many study types. However, only the OR can be used in case-control studies. Because in order to calculate the RR, one must know the risk. Risk is a probability, a proportion of those exposed with an outcome compared to the total population exposed. This is impossible in a case-control study, in which those who already have the outcome are included without knowing the total population exposed.
Risk Ratio
RR is a very intuitive concept. It is the probability (or risk) of one outcome over the probability (risk) of another. Let’s use a study we covered on JF to discuss this concept. Survival was lower in pediatric patients intubated during arrest compared with those not intubated: 411/1135 (36%) vs 460/1135 (41%). So, the RR is 36.2%/40.5% = 0.89. This means survival was reduced by a factor of 0.89 for pediatric arrest patients who were intubated during arrest vs. those who were not. As an example, if survival was expected to be 40%, then intubating during arrest would reduce it to: 40% x 0.89 = 35.6%.
Let’s do one more example. Supination-flexion (SF) vs hyperpronation (HP) to reduce nursemaid’s elbow was more likely to fail. The risk of failure with SF was 96/351 (27%) vs. 32/350 (9%) with HP. The RR was 3. This has a very intuitive meaning: risk of failure with SF was three times more likely than HP.
Odds Ratio
The OR is a way to present the strength of association between risk factors/exposures and outcomes. If the OR is <1, odds are decreased for an outcome; OR >1 means the odds are increased for a given outcome. Let’s look at the examples again and consider odds.
For pediatric arrest, the risk of survival if intubated during arrest was 411/1135 (36%) vs 460/1135 (41%) if not intubated. Let’s convert to odds and calculate an OR.
Intubated: 411/1135-411 = 411/724 = 0.57 odds.
Non-intubated: 460/1135-460 = 460/675 = 0.68 odds.
So, the OR is 0.57/0.68 = 0.83.
Note, this is very close to the RR (0.89) but is a slight overestimate of the effect on the outcome. This is always the case with the OR compared to the RR - it overestimates the effect.
What Does 5/2 Odds Mean
Take the example of supination-flexion vs hyperpronation for nursemaid’s. The risk of failure for SF was 96/351 vs. 32/350 with HP. Let’s convert this to odds.
SF: 96/351-96 = 0.376 odds
HP: 32/350-32 = 0.10 odds
The OR is 0.376/0.10 = 3.7
Note, the OR overestimates the RR, which was 3. Although one could say the risk of failure using SF is 3 times greater than HP, one could not say, based on the OR, the risk was 3.74 times greater. The OR and RR are not the same. What could be said is that the odds of failure is 3.74 times greater.
Risk Ratio vs Odds Ratio
Whereas RR can be interpreted in a straightforward way, OR can not. A RR of 3 means the risk of an outcome is increased threefold. A RR of 0.5 means the risk is cut in half. But an OR of 3 doesn’t mean the risk is threefold; rather the odds is threefold greater. Interpretation of an OR must be in terms of odds, not probability. Again, the OR will always be an overestimate compared to the RR. However, the RR and OR will be similar for rare outcomes, <10%. But the OR increasingly overestimates RR as outcomes exceed 10%. This is easier to understand with an example.
Pretend a new vape, Vapalicious, is associated with cancer.
80/100 people who use it get cancer.
20/100 who don’t use it get cancer.
The risk of getting cancer is 4 times greater in Vapalicious users. RR = 0.8/0.2 = 4
Note how distorted the OR becomes in this example. OR = (80/20)/(20/80) = 16
What if Vapalicious rarely caused cancer?
5/1000 get cancer with Vapalicious vs 2.5/1000 for non-users.
RR = 2.
OR = 2 as well (actually 2.005)
With rare outcomes, the RR and OR are very similar.
Why Does This Matter?
This matters because we often equate the OR and RR. Unwary researchers, reviewers, or news media might report a 16-fold increased risk of cancer from Vapalicious. In fact, there was a 4-fold increased risk of cancer from Vapalicous. Not that I plan to use Vapalicious (or any other vape), but a 16-fold vs 4-fold increase is a gross overestimation of the effect.
What Does the OR Mean?
So, what does an OR mean? Here it is in plain language.
An OR of 1.2 means there is a 20% increase in the odds of an outcome with a given exposure.
An OR of 2 means there is a 100% increase in the odds of an outcome with a given exposure. Or this could be stated that there is a doubling of the odds of the outcome. Note, this is not the same as saying a doubling of the risk.
An OR of 0.2 means there is an 80% decrease in the odds of an outcome with a given exposure.
Summary
Odds Ratio is a measure of the strength of association with an exposure and an outcome.
OR > 1 means greater odds of association with the exposure and outcome.
OR = 1 means there is no association between exposure and outcome.
OR < 1 means there is a lower odds of association between the exposure and outcome.
If the 95% confidence interval for the OR includes 1, the results are not statistically significant.
OR and RR are not the same.
OR always overestimate RR, but…
OR approximates RR when the outcome is rare but markedly overestimates it as outcome exceeds 10%.
References
The odds ratio by Bland and Altman, of Bland-Altman plot fame
Wikipedia aka source of all statistical knowledge
Calculator Use
Convert stated odds to a decimal value of probability and a percentage value of winning and losing. This calculator will convert 'odds for winning' an event or 'odds against winning' an event into percentage chances of both winning and losing.
Be careful if you are using sports teams odds or betting odds. If you see that the Patriots super bowl odds are 9/2, that is most likely 'odds against' and should be entered in the calculator with 'Odds are: against winning.'
When playing a lottery or other games of chance be sure you understand the odds or probability that is reported by the game organizer. A 1 in 500 chance of winning, or probability of winning, is entered into this calculator as '1 to 500 Odds are for winning'. You may also see odds reported simply as chance of winning as 500:1. This most likely means '500 to 1 Odds are against winning' which is exactly the same as '1 to 500 Odds are for winning.'
Probability Formulas:
This calculator will convert 'odds of winning' for an event into a probability percentage chance of success.
Odds, are given as (chances for success) : (chances against success) or vice versa.
If odds are stated as an A to B chance of winning then the probability of winning is given as PW = A / (A + B) while the probability of losing is given as PL = B / (A + B).
For example, you win a game if you pull an ace out of a full deck of 52 cards. Pulling any other card you lose. The chance of winning is 4 out of 52, while the chance against winning is 48 out of 52 (52-4=48). Entering A=4 and B=48 into the calculator as 4:48 odds are for winning you get
For 4 to 48 odds for winning;
Probability of:
Winning = (0.0769) or 7.6923%
Losing = (0.9231) or 92.3077%
'Odds for' winning: 1:12 (reduced from 4:48)
'Odds against' winning: 12:1 (reduced from 48:4)