The relations among three popular indices of risks
Changyong Feng1,2, Bokai Wang1, Hongyue Wang1
1Department of Biostatistics and Computational Biology, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY.
Statistics in Medicine
|July 25, 2019
Summary
Misconceptions about relative risk, risk difference, and odds ratio are common. These key epidemiological indices are not interchangeable and their relationships are complex, requiring careful consideration in research.
Area of Science:
- Epidemiology
- Biostatistics
- Medical Research
Background:
- Relative risk, risk difference, and odds ratio are crucial for comparing disease risks between groups.
- Widespread misconceptions exist regarding the relationships between these epidemiological indices.
- Conflicting advice in publications exacerbates confusion among researchers.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically characterize the intricate relationships among relative risk, risk difference, and odds ratio.
- To clarify prevalent misconceptions, such as a supposed monotone relationship between these indices.
- To provide guidance on the appropriate use and interpretation of these risk measures.
Main Methods:
- Systematic analysis of the mathematical and conceptual relationships between the three indices.
- Development of key theoretical results to elucidate interdependencies.
- Examination of common misunderstandings in biomedical and epidemiologic research.
Main Results:
- The relationships between relative risk, risk difference, and odds ratio are complex and not always monotone.
- Findings demonstrate that these indices are not interchangeable.
- Results derived from one index cannot generally be translated into another.
Conclusions:
- Investigational use of relative risk, risk difference, and odds ratio requires careful consideration of their distinct properties.
- Researchers must avoid assuming interchangeable use or direct translatability of results between indices.
- Clarification of these relationships is essential for accurate interpretation in biomedical and epidemiologic studies.
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