Abstract: In this article, we consider the problem of comparing the distribution of observations in a planar region to a pre-specified null distribution. Our motivation is a surveillance setting where we map locations of incident disease, aiming to monitor these data over time, to locate potential areas of high/low incidence so as to direct public health actions.
We propose a non-parametric approach to distance-based disease risk mapping inspired by tomographic imaging. We consider several one-dimensional projections via the observed distribution of distances to a chosen fixed point; we then compare this distribution to that expected under the null and average these comparisons across projections to compute a relative-risk-like score at each point in the region. The null distribution can be established from historical data. Scores are displayed on the map using a color scale.
In addition, we give a detailed description of the method along with some desirable theoretical properties. To further assess the performance of this method, we compare it to the widely used log ratio of kernel density estimates. As a performance metric, we evaluate the accuracy to locate simulated spatial clusters superimposed on a uniform distribution in the unit disk. Results suggest that both methods can adequately locate this increased risk but each relies on an appropriate choice of parameters. Our proposed method, distance-based mapping (DBM), can also generalize to arbitrary metric spaces and/or high-dimensional data.
Acknowledgements
The research in this paper was funded by a grant from the National Institutes of Health R01 EB0006195 and CDC grant R01 PH000021–01.
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©2013 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin / Boston
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Masthead
- Masthead
- Research Articles
- Sensitivity Analysis for Causal Inference under Unmeasured Confounding and Measurement Error Problems
- Assessing the Causal Effect of Policies: An Example Using Stochastic Interventions
- Novel Point Estimation from a Semiparametric Ratio Estimator (SPRE): Long-Term Health Outcomes from Short-Term Linear Data, with Application to Weight Loss in Obesity
- Exact Nonparametric Confidence Bands for the Survivor Function
- Semiparametric Regression Analysis of Clustered Interval-Censored Failure Time Data with Informative Cluster Size
- A Weighting Analogue to Pair Matching in Propensity Score Analysis
- Alternative Monotonicity Assumptions for Improving Bounds on Natural Direct Effects
- Estimation of Risk Ratios in Cohort Studies with a Common Outcome: A Simple and Efficient Two-stage Approach
- Distance-Based Mapping of Disease Risk
- The Balanced Survivor Average Causal Effect
- Commentary
- Principal Stratification: A Broader Vision
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Masthead
- Masthead
- Research Articles
- Sensitivity Analysis for Causal Inference under Unmeasured Confounding and Measurement Error Problems
- Assessing the Causal Effect of Policies: An Example Using Stochastic Interventions
- Novel Point Estimation from a Semiparametric Ratio Estimator (SPRE): Long-Term Health Outcomes from Short-Term Linear Data, with Application to Weight Loss in Obesity
- Exact Nonparametric Confidence Bands for the Survivor Function
- Semiparametric Regression Analysis of Clustered Interval-Censored Failure Time Data with Informative Cluster Size
- A Weighting Analogue to Pair Matching in Propensity Score Analysis
- Alternative Monotonicity Assumptions for Improving Bounds on Natural Direct Effects
- Estimation of Risk Ratios in Cohort Studies with a Common Outcome: A Simple and Efficient Two-stage Approach
- Distance-Based Mapping of Disease Risk
- The Balanced Survivor Average Causal Effect
- Commentary
- Principal Stratification: A Broader Vision