Family matters : designing, analysing, and understanding family-based studies in life course epidemiology / edited by Debbie A. Lawlor, Gita D. Mishra.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Lawlor, Debbie A.

Mishra, Gita D.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Disease Susceptibility--epidemiology.

Family.

Longitudinal Studies.

Research Design.

Risk Assessment.

Public health--Longitudinal research.

Public health.

Epidemiology.

Families--Health and hygiene--Longitudinal research.

Families.

Families--Health and hygiene.

Longitudinal method.

Medical Subjects:

Disease Susceptibility--epidemiology.

Family.

Longitudinal Studies.

Research Design.

Risk Assessment.

Physical Description:

x, 341 pages, 4 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color) ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2009.

Summary:

Family based studies, including intergenerational, sibling and twin, studies, are increasingly being used to explore life course epidemiology. However, there are issues relating to study design and the statistical analysis of family-based studies that are still not well understood, and comprehending the underlying assumptions of these studies and drawing the inferences from them can be complex.

This book provides the knowledge and skills required to design, analyse, and correctly interpret family-based studies. It explains what these studies can tell us about life course epidemiology; provides practical guidance on how to set up and maintain birth cohorts for completing family-based studies; describes how to undertake appropriate statistical analyses of family-based studies and correctly interpret results; and provides examples that illustrate the ways in which family-based studies can enhance our understanding of life course epidemiology. In addition, the book discusses, the difficulties specific to setting up such studies in low and middle-income countries, and issues relating to proxy informants, where parents provide information on children and vice versa, or siblings provide information about each other. Examples of how family-based studies have been used in understanding the life course epidemiology of cardiovascular disease, mental health, and reproductive health illustrate the applicability of the research to these areas, but also more generally to the wider field of life course epidemiology.

Epidemiologists, biostatisticians and public health practitioners, will find this a comprehensive and authoritative guide to the complex field of family-based studies. Those in social medicine and health policy, as well as clinicians in related fields such as paediatrics, obstetrics and gynaecology, and general practice, will also benefit from the issues discussed.

Contents:

1 Why family matters: an introduction / Debbie A Lawlor, Gita D Mishra 1

Part I The theoretical underpinning for the use of family-based studies in life course epidemiology

2 Theoretical underpinning for the use of intergenerational studies in life course epidemiology / Debbie A Lawlor, Sam Leary, George Davey Smith 13

3 Theoretical underpinning for the use of sibling studies in life course epidemiology / Kate W Strully, Gita D Mishra 39

4 Theoretical underpinning for the use of twin studies in life course epidemiology / Ruth JF Loos, Charlotte L Ridgway, Ken K Ong 57

5 Discussant chapter-summary of the theoretical approaches to family-based studies in life course pidemiology / Hazel M inskip 85

Part II The practicalities of undertaking family-based studies

6 Birth cohorts: a resource for life course studies / Anne-Marie Nybo Andersen, Mia Madsen, Debbie A Lawlor 99

7 Family-based life course studies in low- and middle-income countries / G David Batty, Cesar G Victoria, Debbie A Lawlor 129

8 Using available family members as proxies to provide information on other family members who are difficult to reach / Susannah Tomkins 151

9 Discussant chapter-the practicalities of undertaking family-based studies / Rebecca Hardy, Diana Kuh 181

Part III Statistical methods in family-based studies

10 Statistical considerations in intergenerational studies / Dorothea Nitsch, Gita D Mishra 195

11 Random effects models for sibling and twin-based studies in life course epidemiology / Samuli Ripatti 229

2 Discussant chapter-statistical considerations in family-based life course studies / Amanda Sacker 251

Part IV Some illustrative examples of the use of family-based studies in life course epidemiology

13 Family-based studies applied to the influence of early life factors on cardiovascular disease / Debbie A Lawlor, David A Leon 263

14 How family-based studies have added to the understanding of life course epidemiology of mental health / Stephani L Hatch, Gita D Mishra 279

15 How family-based studies have added to understanding the life course epidemiology of reproductive health / Susan MB Morton, Janet Rich Edwards 295

16 Discussant chapter-using family-based designs in life course epidemiology / John Lynch, Seungmi Yang 317

17 The future of family-based studies in life course epidemiology: challenges and opportunities / Gita D Mishra, Debbie A Lawlor 325.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780199231034

0199231036

OCLC:

277068139