Data Overview

This dashboard is utilizing data from PH251BW Data Visualization course in order to visualize bio markers, recovery and timing of hospitalizations by Gender. The data utilized is the ebola_simulated.rds file found in week 11.

CT Blood Levels and Recovery

Ct stands for Cycle Thresholds, and the values indicate viral loads in a patients bloodstream(1). The lower the Ct value is the higher the viral load is and is assocaited with an increased risk of transmission. A higher Ct is associated with less severe outcomes, which is why it is important to investigate the relation between CT levels and recovery or death in our patient population.

The Box plot below compares CT blood values between patients who died and those who recovered. With Ebola, as mentioned earlier, the lower the CT value is, the higher the viral load or worse the illness is. We can see that both groups has nearly identical distributions. We can infer from this simulated dataset that CT blood value does not appear to differ between people who died and those that recovered. This contradicts studies done by the CDC where they have found relations between higher Ct scores and survival(1).

Date of Hospitalization by Gender

Row

Interpretation

Studies have shown that women utilize healthcare services more than men for various reasons such as schedule, “machismo” and fear of diagnosis(2). Due to this, it is important to visualize if men or women in this simulated Ebola dataset differed in their timing for hospitalizations. The density plot below similarly shows that both genders nearly identical in their timing of hospitalization. They both had overlapping peaks in October of 2014, suggesting that in this sample, men and women sought care at similar times.

Plot

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Sources

1.George B, McGowan M, Norris J, et al. Relationship between cycle threshold values and clinical outcomes among patients with COVID-19 in a large health system. Mayo Clin Proc. 2021;96(10):2580-2588. doi:10.1016/j.mayocp.2021.06.019

  1. Why Don’t Men Go to the Doctor as Often as Women? Tri-City Medical Center. Published June 2017. Accessed December 3, 2025. https://www.tricitymed.org/2017/06/dont-men-go-doctor-often-women/