Question: Doctors have devised a test for koronavirus that has the following property: For any person suffering from korona, there is a 90% chance of the test returning positive. For a person not suffering from korona, there is an 80% chance of the test returning negative. It is known that 10% of people who go for testing have korona. If a person who gets tested gets a +ve result for korona (as in, the test result says they have got korona), what is the probability that they actually have korona?
- 7/10
- 8/11
- 1/3
- 1/2
- 1/4
Approach Solution 1
Let's sketch the potential outcomes of this situation.
Patient having covid = Prob (0.9)
Given that the patient has covid, Prob (test being positive) = 0.9, while Prob (patient not having covid) = 0.1
Considering that the patient has covid, (Prob test being negative) = 0.1
Given that the patient does not have covid, the probability of the test being negative is equal to 0.8 The probability of the test being positive is equal to 0.2
We are now informed that the test is positive. There are two possible outcomes for this: either the patient has covid and the test is positive, or the patient does not have covid and the test is positive.
The probability of a positive test result is equal to 0.27 when divided by 0.27.
Currently, we are not being asked for the likelihood that a test will be positive.
When a patient tests positive for COVID, we are asked what the likelihood is that the patient has covid. Thus, the patient's test results are already positive.
The set of universal outcomes are therefore included in this 0.27. Or, the denominator contains this 0.27.
Which subset of this 0.27 contained the possibility that the patient actually has covid?
The main question is this. The likelihood is 0.09, or 0.1 x 0.9, in this case. Therefore, the necessary probability is 1/3 or 0.09/0.27.
Therefore, there is a 1 in 3 likelihood that a patient who tests positive has covid. This is the main justification for using medical test results with caution.
C is the correct answer.
Approach Solution 2
Chance that a patient has covid = 0.9%
The chance that a person doesn't have covid = 0.1
Since the patient has covid, the chance that the test will be positive is 0.9.
Since the patient does not have covid, the chance that the test will come back negative is 0.8.
Since the patient does not have covid, the chance that the test will be positive is only 0.2.
Chance that the test will be positive = 0.90 0.10 + 0.90 0.20 = 0.27.
Now, no one has asked us how likely it is that the test will be good. If a patient tests positive for covid, we are asked to figure out how likely it is that he or she has covid. So the patient has already been found to have the disease. So, the set of universal results is part of this 0.27. Or, this 0.27 is in the "number of things" part.
Which part of this 0.27 was the case where the patient really does have covid?
This chance is 0.1 times 0.9, which equals 0.09. So, the needed chance is 0.09/0.27 = 1/3
So, a patient with a positive test has a one-in-three chance of having covid. This is the most important reason why we need to be careful with the results of medical tests.
The correct response is C.
Approach Solution 3
To find the probability that a person actually has korona given that they received a positive test result, we can use Bayes' theorem. Let's define the events:
A: Person has korona
B: Test result is positive (i.e., the test says they have korona)
We are given the following probabilities:
P(A) = Probability that a person has korona = 10% = 0.10
P(B|A) = Probability of a positive test result given the person has korona = 90% = 0.90
P(~A) = Probability that a person does not have korona = 90% = 0.90
P(B|~A) = Probability of a positive test result given the person does not have korona = 20% = 0.20 (since 80% chance of a negative test result)
Now, we want to find P(A|B) - the probability that a person has korona given that they received a positive test result. According to Bayes' theorem:
P(A|B) = [P(B|A) * P(A)] / P(B)
To find P(B), the probability of a positive test result, we can use the law of total probability:
P(B) = P(B|A) * P(A) + P(B|~A) * P(~A)
Substitute the given values:
P(B) = (0.90 * 0.10) + (0.20 * 0.90)
P(B) = 0.09 + 0.18
P(B) = 0.27
Now, calculate P(A|B):
P(A|B) = (0.90 * 0.10) / 0.27
P(A|B) = 0.09 / 0.27
P(A|B) = 1/3
The probability that a person actually has korona given that they received a positive test result (P(A|B)) is 1/3.
The appropriate answer is C
“Doctors have devised a test for koronavirus that has the following property" - is a topic of the GMAT Quantitative reasoning section of GMAT. This question has been borrowed from the book “GMAT Official Guide Quantitative Review”.
To understand GMAT Problem Solving questions, applicants must possess fundamental qualitative skills. Quant tests a candidate's aptitude in reasoning and mathematics. The GMAT Quantitative test's problem-solving phase consists of a question and a list of possible responses. By using mathematics to answer the question, the candidate must select the appropriate response. The problem-solving section of the GMAT Quant topic is made up of very complicated math problems that must be solved by using the right math facts.
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