What Methods are Used to Study Long Term Health Outcomes?
Epidemiologists use various methods to study long term health outcomes, including:
- Cohort studies: These follow a group of individuals over a prolonged period to observe the development of health outcomes. - Case-control studies: These compare individuals with a particular outcome to those without, looking retrospectively to identify potential causes. - Randomized controlled trials (RCTs): These are used to assess the long-term efficacy and safety of interventions by randomly assigning participants to different treatment groups. - Surveillance systems: These track the incidence and prevalence of diseases over time, providing data on long term trends.
