In an experiment comparing two different surgical procedures for hernia repair (A Single- Blinded, Randomized Comparison of Laparoscopic Versus Open Hernia Repair in Children, Pediatrics

In an experiment comparing two different surgical procedures for hernia repair (€œA Single- Blinded, Randomized Comparison of Laparoscopic Versus Open Hernia Repair in Children,€ Pediatrics [2009]: 332€“ 336), 89 children were assigned at random to one of the two surgical methods. Because there were potentially confounding variables that they could not control, the researchers relied on the random assignment of subjects to treatments to create comparable groups. One such variable was age. After random assignment to treatments, the researchers looked at the age distribution of the children in each of the two experimental groups (laparoscopic repair [LR] and open repair [OR]). The figure on the next page is from the paper. Based on this figure, has the random assignment of subjects to experimental groups been successful in creating groups that are similar in age? Explain.

FIGURE FOR EXERCISE 144 16 -1 14 12 10 2 LR OR