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Results for “Epidemiologic Research Design”

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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1994

[An epidemiologic research design using the Annual of the Pathological Autopsy Cases in Japan].

Epidemiologic research designs using the Annual of the Pathological Autopsy Cases in Japan (APAC hereinafter) are discussed in this paper. The APAC data base has been recommended for use in epidemiologic research. However, it has not often been utilized for such research, even though it covers all pathological autopsy cases in Japan, perhaps because of different sampling proportions of each disease and because of the dead control series in APAC. First, we present epidemiologic measures in using the APAC. We show that the data base can be treated as a case-control design and that the magnitude of the exposure effect should be estimated by an odds ratio. Next, selection bias and information bias in using the APAC are discussed. The independence of the control series from the exposure is important in the determination of the control disease. Because this design is based on internal comparison, non-differential misclassification should be stressed more than differential misclassification.

Autopsy↗
PubMed1987

Toward an "unconfounded" classification of epidemiologic research design.

Existing classifications of research designs for epidemiologic studies are inconsistent and confusing because of the conceptual "confounding" of three distinct concepts: directionality in which exposure and outcome are investigated, sample selection criteria, and timing of the study proper with respect to the calendar times of exposure and outcome. The authors have attempted to construct a classification in which these three concepts comprise distinct (if not totally independent) axes. Closer attention to the distinctions described may help the planning and interpretation of epidemiologic studies, as well as facilitate future teaching and communication.

Cross-Sectional Studies↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Classification by levels of clinico-epidemiological research designs].

The objective was to identify the characteristics of epidemiologic designs enabling their classification. A critical review of the literature in the clinical epidemiologic area was done to establish the main differences between designs. A meeting with experts to discuss this controversial topic and obtain criteria by consensus was organized. We propose an integral classification based on levels with two fundamental shafts: intervention and explanatory reasoning.

Classification↗
PubMed1994

Gaps in epidemiologic research methods: design considerations for studies that use food-frequency questionnaires.

It is increasingly common for analytic epidemiology studies of diet and disease to select a semi-quantitative food-frequency questionnaire for dietary assessment. Reasons include its low cost and focus on usual intake. However, the components of variation in nutrient intake based on such methods are poorly understood, and it does not provide a quantitative estimate of nutrient intakes. Because it is unlikely that such methods will be improved substantially, studies using a food-frequency questionnaire should include a dietary standardization substudy. A substudy, conducted in a sample of study participants and aimed at collecting multiple days of diet recall or record, provides data for quantitative calibration of frequency-derived nutrient intake estimates and adjustment of risk estimates for measurement error. Attention should also be directed at other aspects of study design, such as study population selection to maximize dietary exposure contrasts, that can increase the informativeness of epidemiologic studies.

Diet↗
PubMed1999

Study design and hypothesis testing: issues in the evaluation of evidence from research in nutritional epidemiology.

In addressing questions about the relations of dietary factors to disease in human populations, epidemiologic studies must account for the complexity of dietary habits, the intercorrelations among dietary habits, and the correlations of those habits with other behaviors. Furthermore, for studies of chronic disease, relevant dietary exposures may occur over decades. The classic epidemiologic study designs have been used to examine the associations between diet and disease; the strengths and weaknesses of those designs must be considered. Concerns have been raised regarding the validity of the measures of diet, the differential recall of diet by diseased individuals in case-control studies, and confounding by other related factors in both case-control and cohort studies. In clinical trials there may be difficulties in effecting the necessary dietary changes, especially for macronutrients, and there are also concerns about those circumstances in which participants cannot be blinded to their treatment. For case-control and cohort studies and for some clinical trials, intercorrelations among nutrients are a concern in the identification of factors that are important in the etiology of disease. It is important to understand these considerations when interpreting nutritional epidemiologic studies for the purpose of setting public policy. No one study can be considered definitive in the understanding of a diet-disease relation. However, epidemiologic findings from multiple studies taken together can contribute significantly to our understanding of diet in relation to disease in humans.

Bias↗
PubMed1989

Biochemical epidemiology in community-based studies: practical lessons from a study of T-cell subsets.

Elaborate laboratory tests are increasingly being incorporated into traditional epidemiologic research designs, a concept commonly termed biochemical epidemiology. Some of the issues encountered are illustrated by a recent population-based survey of healthy individuals in the Washington, D.C. area designed to examine the effects of demographic characteristics, lifestyle, and medical conditions on peripheral blood T-cell subsets. The study was conducted in three phases: selection of households by random digit dialing (Phase I); telephone interviews (Phase II), and self-administered questionnaires and phlebotomy (Phase III). Although this design facilitated the selection of the final study population, it influenced the participation rates by offering opportunities for nonresponse at each phase. Race was the strongest determinant of response rate despite the use of highly-trained, racially-matched telephone interviewers and repeated attempts at refusal conversion. Also discussed are issues of confidentiality, and logistics of biologic specimen collection and handling. The difficulties encountered in this survey are examined, with suggestions for future population-based investigations involving biochemical epidemiology.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Estimating the occurrence of child maltreatment and risk-factor effects: benefits of a mixed-design strategy in epidemiologic research.

Despite the large volume of literature on child abuse and neglect generated over the past two decades, there has been relatively little comprehensive discussion of the limitations of different study designs for achieving major epidemiologic research goals. Although some improvements have been made in conventional research designs, there have been few efforts to develop new approaches. This article discusses the methodologic limitations of four observational study designs--ecologic, case-control, cross-sectional, and cohort--that dominate the child abuse and neglect literature; identifies key features of an "ideal" study of child maltreatment; and proposes a new mixed-design research strategy. The major advantage of the proposed strategy is that it greatly improves the ability to identify cases of child maltreatment from a well-defined population at risk representing diverse segments of the US population.

Child↗
PubMed2000

Causal effects in clinical and epidemiological studies via potential outcomes: concepts and analytical approaches.

A central problem in public health studies is how to make inferences about the causal effects of treatments or agents. In this article we review an approach to making such inferences via potential outcomes. In this approach, the causal effect is defined as a comparison of results from two or more alternative treatments, with only one of the results actually observed. We discuss the application of this approach to a number of data collection designs and associated problems commonly encountered in clinical research and epidemiology. Topics considered include the fundamental role of the assignment mechanism, in particular the importance of randomization as an unconfounded method of assignment; randomization-based and model-based methods of statistical inference for causal effects; methods for handling noncompliance and missing data; and methods for limiting bias in the analysis of observational data, including propensity score matching and sensitivity analysis.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1988

Cancer prevention in the workplace and natural environment. A review of etiology, research design, and methods of risk reduction.

Guidelines for developing programs in cancer prevention and reduction of risk related to occupational and environmental carcinogens are provided in this review, which includes a summary of experimental and epidemiologic research designs for assessing potential etiologic agents, an overview of known occupational and environmental carcinogens, and a summary of general approaches to risk reduction. This review includes human cancer risks in the workplace and in the natural environment, which encompasses air pollution, water pollution, and hazardous waste disposal. Fourteen tables present the following: (1) established and probable carcinogens that may be encountered in the workplace, as contaminants of air or water, or as hazardous waste; (2) regulated carcinogens; (3) primary sources of exposure; (4) research designs; and (5) risk reduction methods. The interactive effects of multiple exposures are discussed as they relate to etiology and prevention. The importance of federal regulation is emphasized, as well as the need to understand the potential for cancer prevention in the context of broader economic, political and social issues.

Air Pollution↗
PubMed1999

Musculoskeletal diseases--a continuing challenge for epidemiologic research.

In this paper some quality issues of epidemiologic studies on work-related musculoskeletal diseases are discussed. The advantages and disadvantages of different types of epidemiologic studies are described, among them the rarely applied case-crossover design. Problems in the ascertainment of disease, as well as the assessment of exposure to physical load, are also brought up. The importance of understanding the pathomechanisms of the diseases under study is stressed.

Biomechanical Phenomena↗