LSAT Explanation PT 42, S2, Q5: Medical specialists report that patients with
LSAT Question Stem
Which one of the following, if true, most helps to reconcile the medical specialists' two claims?
Logical Reasoning Question Type
This is a Paradox question.
Correct Answer
The correct answer to this question is B.
LSAT Question Complete Explanation
Let's first break down the information in the passage. The passage tells us that medical specialists report that patients with back muscle injuries who receive a combination of drugs and physical therapy have the same results as those who receive only physical therapy. However, the specialists also claim that drugs are a necessary part of the treatment for all patients who receive them for back muscle injuries. This creates a paradox: if both treatments have the same outcome, why are the drugs necessary?
To understand this paradox, let's use a simple example. Imagine there are two students who need to study for a test. One student studies alone, while the other student studies with a tutor. If both students end up with the same test score, we might wonder why the tutor was necessary for the second student.
The question type for this problem is Paradox, and we are asked to find an answer choice that helps reconcile the medical specialists' two claims.
Answer choice (A): This choice states that there are only two treatment options for back muscle injuries: physical therapy alone or drugs and physical therapy. However, this doesn't explain why drugs are necessary for those who receive them, so this answer choice is incorrect.
Answer choice (B): This choice is the correct answer. It explains that medical specialists can accurately determine who needs just physical therapy and who needs both drugs and therapy. This means that when drugs are prescribed, those patients need them, perhaps because their injuries are more severe. This answer choice resolves the paradox by showing why drugs are necessary when prescribed.
Answer choice (C): This choice shows that some injuries are healed by drugs and therapy, but it doesn't explain why the drugs were needed. It doesn't address the paradox of why patients who receive only physical therapy have the same outcome as those who receive both treatments.
Answer choice (D): This choice demonstrates that drugs can help heal some patients, but it doesn't explain why the two groups of patients generally have the same outcome and why drugs are necessary when prescribed. Therefore, this answer choice is incorrect.
Answer choice (E): This choice focuses on injuries to other muscles, which is not the focus of the stimulus. Even if we consider "other muscles" as analogous, the rest of the answer choice confuses the issue by showing that patients treated with both drugs and physical therapy fared better than those treated with only physical therapy. This answer choice doesn't help reconcile the paradox and is incorrect.