Can Cross-Sectional Studies Contribute to Causal Inference? It Depends
2022/02/25 by David A Savitz, David A. Savitz, Gregory A Wellenius +1 · 29 citations
Environmental Science · Mathematics · Medicine · #Health, Environment, Cognitive Aging #Advanced Causal Inference Techniques #Nutritional Studies and Diet
paper · doi:10.1093/aje/kwac037
Abstract
Cross-sectional studies-often defined as those in which exposure and outcome are assessed at the same point in time-are frequently viewed as minimally informative for causal inference. While cross-sectional studies may be susceptible to reverse causality, may be limited to assessment of disease prevalence rather than incidence, or may only provide estimates of current rather than past exposures, not all cross-sectional studies suffer these limitations. Moreover, none of these concerns are unique to or inherent in the structure of a cross-sectional study. Regardless of when exposure and disease were ascertained relative to one another, a cross-sectional study may provide insights into the causal effects of exposure on disease incidence. Simply labeling a study as "cross-sectional" and assuming that 1 or more of these limitations exist and are materially important fails to recognize the need for a more nuanced assessment and risks discarding evidence that may be useful in assessing causal relationships.
Cited by
- High rates of polygyny do not lock large proportions of men out of the marriage market
- Concerns about the health effects of industrially produced seed oils are without scientific foundation: a scoping narrative review of the clinical and observational evidence
- Elucidating the causal mechanisms of Taenia solium transmission in humans, pigs and the environment: A global systematic review
- Temporal bias [wikipedia]
- The Feasibility of Deriving the Electronic Frailty Index from Australian General Practice Records. [europepmc]
- The effects of moderate alcohol consumption on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. [europepmc]
- Anemia among Syrian Refugee Children Aged 6 to 23 Months Living in Greater Beirut, Lebanon, including the Voices of Mothers' and Local Healthcare Staff: A Mixed-Methods Study. [europepmc]
- Occupational heat stress, heat-related effects and the related social and economic loss: a scoping literature review. [europepmc]
- Mediterranean Diet and Airway Inflammation in School-Aged Children. [europepmc]
- Alcohol consumption and the risk of liver disease: a nationwide, population-based study. [europepmc]
- Health-Related Quality of Life and Psychosocial Variables in Women with Colorectal Pelvic Floor Dysfunction: A Cross-Sectional Study. [europepmc]
- Global vaccine coverage and childhood survival estimates: 1990-2019. [europepmc]
- Association between AST/ALT ratio and diabetic retinopathy risk in type 2 diabetes: a cross-sectional investigation. [europepmc]
- Comorbid depression among adults with heart failure in Ethiopia: a hospital-based cross-sectional study. [europepmc]
- Residential greenness and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in a large cohort in southern China: Potential causal links, risk trajectories, and mediation pathways. [europepmc]
- Investigating Water Balance as a Nutritional Determinant in Breastfeeding: A Comparative Study of Water Consumption Patterns and Influencing Factors. [europepmc]
- Ultra-Processed Foods and Nutritional Intake of Children and Adolescents from Cantagalo, São Tomé and Príncipe. [europepmc]
- Empowering precision medicine: Insights from a national survey on pharmacogenomics knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions among community pharmacists in the UAE. [europepmc]
- Application of ChatGPT-4 to oculomics: a cost-effective osteoporosis risk assessment to enhance management as a proof-of-principles model in 3PM. [europepmc]
- Comparing Perspectives on Traditional and Complementary Medicine Use in Oncology: Insights from Healthcare Professionals and Oncology Patients in Western Mexico. [europepmc]
- Perceived artificial intelligence readiness in medical and health sciences education: a survey study of students in Saudi Arabia. [europepmc]
- Causal effect of molar incisor hypomineralisation on oral health-related quality of life of Australian children aged 7-16 years. [europepmc]
- Academic resilience and academic performance of university students: the mediating role of teacher support. [europepmc]
- Serious adverse drug reactions associated with anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccines and their reporting trends in the EudraVigilance database. [europepmc]
- Gene-Diet Interactions in Diabetes Mellitus: Current Insights and the Potential of Personalized Nutrition. [europepmc]
- Suppression effect of folate on poly- and perfluoroalkyl substance-induced alterations in lipids and the atherogenic index of plasma in adolescents. [europepmc]
- Integrative regression modeling of insulin sensitivity, resistance, and beta-cell dysfunction in predicting female infertility: a cross-sectional NHANES study. [europepmc]
- Demystifying the link between periodontitis and oral cancer: a systematic review integrating clinical, pre-clinical, and in vitro data. [europepmc]
- Multilevel Analysis of Zero-Dose Children in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Three Delays Model Study. [europepmc]
Related