China
Africa
Explore chapters and articles related to this topic
Introduction to Drugs and Pregnancy
Published in “Bert” Bertis Britt Little, Drugs and Pregnancy, 2022
Epidemiologic studies have several limitations. Spurious associations often occur because many epidemiologists lack medical or biological training, and fail to scrutinize their “statistical associations” for biological plausibility. Other confounders include sample size. Some investigations involve small numbers of exposed or affected subjects because exposures are sometimes rare. Rarity of the maternal disease or situation that led to the exposure may be responsible for an observed association with a congenital anomaly, rather than the agent itself. Of paramount importance is that the observed association be biologically plausible.
Epidemiology
Published in Samuel C. Morris, Cancer Risk Assessment, 2020
Several kinds of epidemiological studies have been developed. Each is designed to take advantage of a particular kind of situation from which the etiology of a disease can be studied. Different designs have different advantages and weaknesses. In selecting a design, or in evaluating the validity and appropriateness of a study, it is important to classify the design type and recognize its characteristic strengths and weaknesses.
The Epidemiology of Recurrent Pregnancy Loss
Published in Howard J.A. Carp, Recurrent Pregnancy Loss, 2020
Epidemiologic studies can provide essential information for basic laboratory research, case-control studies, or treatment trials. However, it seems that epidemiologic knowledge is rarely taken into account in current clinical research and management of RPL.
A harmonized protocol for an international multicenter prospective study of nanotechnology workers: the NanoExplore cohort
Published in Nanotoxicology, 2023
Irina Guseva Canu, Ekaterina Plys, Camille Velarde Crézé, Carlos Fito, Nancy B. Hopf, Athena Progiou, Chiara Riganti, Jean-Jacques Sauvain, Giulia Squillacioti, Guillaume Suarez, Pascal Wild, Enrico Bergamaschi
There are four main prerequisites for the study protocol: i) to create a well-characterized registry of eligible participants (i.e. ENM worker registry) for prospective epidemiological studies by developing a solid, yet feasible recruitment strategy; ii) to harmonize and standardize all processes in deriving the exposure assessment strategy, in characterizing the population, in verifying pre-analytical requirements for the biomonitoring methods; iii) to select a panel of biomarkers for prospective epidemiological studies by assessing relationships between exposure and health effects at short-, medium- and longer-terms; iv) to evaluate associations between concentrations of airborne particle exposure and biomarkers of exposure and early effects in terms of causal inference after reducing, whenever possible, the extent of exposure (Schulte et al. 2016; Guseva Canu et al. 2013).
Epidemiology of rheumatoid arthritis: genetic and environmental influences
Published in Expert Review of Clinical Immunology, 2022
Aliki I. Venetsanopoulou, Yannis Alamanos, Paraskevi V. Voulgari, Alexandros A. Drosos
Epidemiological studies identify the distribution of diseases and factors underlying their source; Frequently used measures like prevalence and incidence provide essential information that may be used to evaluate strategies for disease control and as a guide to the management of patients in whom the disease has already developed. Nevertheless, studies on the epidemiology of RA present methodological differences, such as different sets of criteria to determine the disease onset. Other discrepancies may include the sample size, the minimum age for enrollment in the study, the lack of standardization for population differences, and time trends. However, most of the recently published studies follow the 1987 American College of Rheumatology criteria for the definition of RA, include a sufficient sample of the community, enroll patients over the age of 16, and report age-adjusted prevalence rates. Still, a possible inherent bias in population studies remains and is difficult to control.
Brain Environment Interactions: Stress, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, and the Need for a Postmortem Brain Collection
Published in Psychiatry, 2022
Elizabeth Osuch, Robert Ursano, He Li, Maree Webster, Chris Hough, Carol Fullerton, Gregory Leskin
Epidemiological studies are integral to defining the population(s) at risk and the natural course of illnesses affecting human behavior. Epidemiologic studies of the genetic influences on human behavior use methodologies such as family and twin studies in humans, and genetic analyses comparing healthy control subjects with people suffering from various mental illnesses. Clinical trials of medications and/or behavioral interventions are extremely important for developing treatment interventions for disorders. Animal studies involve organisms less complex than humans and provide much of the understanding of the essential mechanisms of physiological function and malfunction, and as such are indispensable components of human research. Pathology research looks at the tissue of humans and other animals after the death of individuals with mental illness in the former, and intentional alterations of genes and/or environment in the latter. Let us consider these research approaches in turn as they have contributed to our understanding of trauma responses.