Using developmental epidemiology to choose the target population for an intervention program in a high-risk...

Used epidemiologic techniques to evaluate the appropriate recruitment strategy for an intervention in a high-risk inner-city neighborhood. Risk factor epidemiology can play a major role in the design of community interventions by assisting in the estimation of the potential effects of different recruitment strategies. The long-term goal of this intervention program for infants and young children was to improve outcomes in elementary school. Our results indicated that that among mothers in the catchment area, the relative risks associated with levels of maternal education for high prevalence disabilities were smaller than in the whole school district. These data suggest that recruiting any mother in the catchment neighborhood would result in more individuals who could benefit from the intervention receiving services and in a larger reduction in cases of developmental problems associated with the risk factor. That is, the study sample was defined by residence in a neighborhood rather than by individual risk factors to maximize the impact on the number of cases that could be prevented.