When can relative risks provide causal estimates?

2021/10/04 by Webster, A. J.
#FOS: Computer and information sciences #Methodology (stat.ME)

paper · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2110.01688

Abstract

It is emphasised that for epidemiological studies where disease incidence is rare, results from conventional proportional hazards models can often correctly estimate causal associations. The well-known "backdoor criteria" from causal-inference is applied to the common epidemiological study of rare diseases with a proportional hazards model, providing an example of when and how estimates from conventional proportional hazards studies can be used. A similar study with the "frontdoor criteria", that allows studies with unmeasured confounders, finds similar results to conventional mediation analysis with measured confounders. Reasons for this are discussed.

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