Epidemiological Studies: A Practical Guide

Alan Silman is an epidemiologist and rheumatologist. He was Director of Arthritis Research UK's Epidemiology Unit at the University of Manchester from 1988-2006, before moving on to become that organisation's first Medical Director from 2007-2014. Since 2015 he has been Professor of Musculoskeletal Health at the University of Oxford working in the fields of comorbidity and big data.Gary Macfarlane trained in statistics and then medicine at the University of Glasgow before undertaking a PhD in epidemiology at the University of Bristol. He was a cancer epidemiologist at the European Institute of Oncology, Milan, held the Chair in Epidemiology at the University of Manchester and currently holds the same position at The University of Aberdeen (as well as being a Consultant in the Department of Public Health at NHS Grampian) with a research focus on musculoskeletal conditions.Tatiana Macfarlane trained in mathematics at Lomonosov Moscow State University. She was a cancer epidemiologist at the Blokhin Cancer Research Centre in Moscow, the International Agency for Research on Cancer in Lyons and the European Institute of Oncology in Milan. She undertook a PhD in epidemiology at The University of Manchester Dental School where she was Lecturer then Senior Lecturer. She was a Reader in Epidemiology at The University of Aberdeen and is currently an epidemiologist at The University of Dundee.

This is a practical, hands on guide to the design, planning, conduct, analysis and interpretation of epidemiological studies. It applies to all human studies of health and disease that require the collection and analysis of data to answer questions on disease risk, health outcomes and the effects of interventions in 'real world' populations.

Part A: Introudction