Abstract
Machine learning (ML) studies using clinical data often rely on preprocessing and filtering pipelines before model development. The filtering decisions made in these pipelines can alter the dataset's statistical structure and may artificially reduce or increase the complexity of the prediction task. We argue that filtering choices should be treated as part of the scientific method rather than as a routine preprocessing step. We further discuss the need for explainable and transparent preprocessing pipelines that allow researchers to understand why specific filtering choices are made and how these choices affect the resulting data distribution and model performance. All of the source code for this work is available on GitHub.
Keywords
Publication details
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- Open access
- Green open access
Cite this article
APA 7
Subedar, N., Campbell, C., Zhang, W., Perri, D., Culgin, S., & Hamilton-Wright, A. (2026). Beyond the Model: The Critical Role of Data Filtering in Clinical Machine Learning. https://omanscience.com/en/articles/beyond-the-model-the-critical-role-of-data-filtering-in-clinical-machine-learning
MLA 9
Subedar, Noah, et al. "Beyond the Model: The Critical Role of Data Filtering in Clinical Machine Learning." https://omanscience.com/en/articles/beyond-the-model-the-critical-role-of-data-filtering-in-clinical-machine-learning.
Chicago (author–date)
Subedar, Noah, Colin Campbell, Wenjing Zhang, Dan Perri, Sarah Culgin, and Andrew Hamilton-Wright. 2026. "Beyond the Model: The Critical Role of Data Filtering in Clinical Machine Learning." https://omanscience.com/en/articles/beyond-the-model-the-critical-role-of-data-filtering-in-clinical-machine-learning.
Harvard
Subedar, N., Campbell, C., Zhang, W., Perri, D., Culgin, S. and Hamilton-Wright, A. (2026) 'Beyond the Model: The Critical Role of Data Filtering in Clinical Machine Learning', Available at: https://omanscience.com/en/articles/beyond-the-model-the-critical-role-of-data-filtering-in-clinical-machine-learning.
Vancouver
Subedar N, Campbell C, Zhang W, Perri D, Culgin S, Hamilton-Wright A. Beyond the Model: The Critical Role of Data Filtering in Clinical Machine Learning. https://omanscience.com/en/articles/beyond-the-model-the-critical-role-of-data-filtering-in-clinical-machine-learning
IEEE
N. Subedar, C. Campbell, W. Zhang, D. Perri, S. Culgin, and A. Hamilton-Wright, "Beyond the Model: The Critical Role of Data Filtering in Clinical Machine Learning," https://omanscience.com/en/articles/beyond-the-model-the-critical-role-of-data-filtering-in-clinical-machine-learning.