Related topics: heart disease , risk
Risk factor
hideA risk factor is a variable associated with an increased risk of disease or infection. Risk factors are correlational and not necessarily causal, because correlation does not imply causation. For example, being young cannot be said to cause measles, but young people are more at risk as they are less likely to have developed immunity during a previous epidemic.
Risk factors are evaluated by comparing the risk of those exposed to the potential risk factor to those not exposed. Let's say that at a wedding, 74 people ate the chicken and 22 of them were ill, while of the 35 people who had the fish or vegetarian meal only 2 were ill. Did the chicken make the people ill?
So the chicken eaters' risk = 22/74 = 0.297 And non-chicken eaters' risk = 2/35 = 0.057.
Those who ate the chicken had a risk over five times as high as those who did not, suggesting that eating chicken was the cause of the illness. Note, however, that this is not proof. Statistical methods would be used in a less clear cut case to decide what level of risk the risk factor would have to present to be able to say the risk factor is linked to the disease (for example in a study of the link between smoking and lung cancer). Even then, no amount of statistical analysis could prove that the risk factor causes the disease; this could only be proven using direct methods such as a medical explanation of the disease's roots.
The earliest use of risk factor analysis dates back to Avicenna's The Canon of Medicine (1020s), though the term "risk factor" was first coined by heart researcher Dr. Thomas R. Dawber in a landmark scientific paper in 1961, where he attributed heart disease to specific conditions (blood pressure, cholesterol, smoking).
For more information about Risk factor, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with risk factors
New genes for lung disease discovered
Dec 13, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have discovered five genetic variants that are associated with the health of the human lung. The research by an international consortium of 96 scientists from 63 centres in Europe and Australia ...
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Regular coffee, decaf and tea all associated with reduced risk for diabetes
13 hours ago |
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Individuals who drink more coffee (regular or decaffeinated) or tea appear to have a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to an analysis of previous studies reported in the December 14/28 issue of Archives of ...
Strict blood sugar control in some diabetics does not lower heart attack, stroke risk
13 hours ago |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Strictly controlling blood glucose levels in type 2 diabetics with coexisting health problems such as heart disease and hypertension does not lower their risk of a heart attack or stroke, according to a UC ...
Myopia appears to have become more common
14 hours ago |
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Myopia (nearsightedness) may have been more common in Americans from 1999 to 2004 than it was 30 years ago, according to a report in the December issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.
Antidepressants may increase risk of stroke and death
Medicine & Health / Medications
15 hours ago |
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Postmenopausal women who take antidepressants face a small but statistically significant increased risk for stroke and death compared with those who do not take the drugs. The new findings are from the federally-funded, multi-institution, ...
New criteria to project preemies' time in hospital, says researcher
16 hours ago |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers have developed a new way to estimate when the tiniest preemies -- babies born months early -- will go home from the hospital.
UNC scientists coordinate study of link between insulin use and cancer in people with diabetes
18 hours ago |
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Type 2 diabetes and obesity are linked to an increased risk of certain cancers. Recently published studies suggested that insulin glargine (a synthetic insulin preparation marketed under the trade name Lantus), ...
Study finds over 90 percent of people with gum disease are at risk for diabetes
20 hours ago |
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The study, led by Dr. Shiela Strauss, Associate Professor of Nursing and Co-Director of the Statistics and Data Management Core for NYU's Colleges of Dentistry and Nursing, examined data from 2,923 adult participants in the ...
Study unveils potential genetic links to lung disease risk
21 hours ago |
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A new study involving data from more than 20,000 individuals has uncovered several DNA sequences linked to impaired pulmonary function. The research, an analysis that combined the results of several smaller studies, provides ...
Most eligible patients miss out on cardiac resynchronization therapy for heart failure
Dec 11, 2009 |
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Most patients with heart failure likely to benefit from a pacemaker including the capacity for cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) do not receive such an implantable device, reports a national study in the December 2009 ...
Neuroscience in the driving seat
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Dec 11, 2009 |
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It emerged today that more drivers are using hand-held mobile phones than two years ago, despite the introduction of tougher penalties. The Transport Research Laboratory is worried because phone-using drivers ...
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