Exposure-Measurement Error Is Frequently Ignored When Interpreting Epidemiologic Study Results

Details

• Personal Author:
  Church, Timothy R. ; Greenland S ; Jurek AM ; Maldonado G
• Description:
  Introduction: One important source of error in study results is error in measuring exposures. When interpreting study results, one should consider the impact that exposure-measurement error (EME) might have had on study results. Methods: To assess how often this consideration is made and the form it takes, journal articles were randomly sampled from original articles appearing in the American Journal of Epidemiology and Epidemiology in 2001, and the International Journal of Epidemiology between December 2000 and October 2001. Results: Twentytwo (39%) of the 57 articles surveyed mentioned nothing about EME. Of the 35 articles that mentioned something about EME, 16 articles described qualitatively the effect EME could have had on study results. Only one study quantified the impact of EME on study results; the investigators used a sensitivity analysis. Few authors discussed the measurement error in their study in any detail. Conclusions: Overall, the potential impact of EME on error in epidemiologic study results appears to be ignored frequently in practice. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Environmental Monitoring Epidemiology Occupational Health Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Bias Epidemiologic Methods Exposure-assessment Exposure-levels Exposure-methods Mathematical-models Measurement Error Qualitative-analysis Quantitative-analysis Risk-analysis Risk-factors Standards Statistical-analysis Statistical-quality-control

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• ISSN:
  0393-2990
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  California ; Minnesota ; OSHA Region 5 ; OSHA Region 9
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  21
• Issue:
  12
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20037602
• Citation:
  Eur J Epidemiol 2006 Dec; 21(12):871-876
• Contact Point Address:
  Anne M. Jurek, Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota, Mayo Mail Code 715, 420 Delaware St. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2007
• Performing Organization:
  University of Minnesota Twin Cities
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  European Journal of Epidemiology
• End Date:
  20250630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:8979b00b28a5668288f66dc9f383d3360378b925b571338f153b69fdfd6eb573fe428bcfec67ae02edde702db029a4a5ec14c2280ed69bde1005d89b7e297417
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/188672/cdc_188672_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 167.29 KB ]