Epidemiology: Study Design and Data Analysis

Running head: EPIDIMIOLOGY
EPIDIMIOLOGY
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1EPIDIMIOLOGY
Part 1
Among the methods of studies mentioned namely cohort study design, cross-sectional
study and case-control study design, the most suited study design for investigating the causal
effects during a study is the cohort design.
This cohort design was used since the study design aims to observe a group of
individuals especially a large group. By exploring the group the risk factors to which the
group is exposed can be possibly found out. The data that is already collected can be studied
in a prospective manner using this cohort method of studies. This type of study can also be
used in order to recognise the factors in the social terms that tend to influence the health of
the individuals.
The use of this study design can be justified using the examples of the application of
the cohort study designs can be seen in case of the Nurses' Health Study. This had been
conducted for investigating the health of the women and the impact the use of oral
contraceptives have on their health. The individuals who participated in the study were
interrogated regarding their lifestyle choices and also about the gains and harms that is caused
due to the various factors including their nutrition and diet. This was possible using the
cohort study design as it acts as an efficient tool to understand the relationships that exists
between the environment and the health factors. Cohort study also enable the researchers to
pool in large amount of data that helps to increase the size of the sample, making the results
more credible especially in rare scenarios as of different types of cancer (Titulaer et al.,
2013).
Another such example can be seen in case of the Framingham Heart Study. This study
involved over a 5,209 male and female participants in order to find out the causes of the

2EPIDIMIOLOGY
factors that are involved in cardiovascular risk. A study was designed which was a ‘large-
scale cohort study’ in order to explore the babies that were born in the same week but in
various parts of the United Kingdom. This study was possible using the cohort design as it
involved a huge sample sign and it was required to understand the relationship between the
behaviour of the child and the cognitive development. Additionally the social factors that
were involved in the health of the children and their parents were also investigated using the
study (Woodward, 2013).
Part 2
Investigate the long term effects of detention on the mental and physical health of
asylum seekers
For the given medical conditions the appropriate study method is investigated as the
benefits and the drawbacks of the selected study design is discussed. In order to investigate
the long term effects of detention on the mental and physical health of asylum seekers, the
appropriate study design was detected as the method of systematic review, which included
meta-analytic methods. This type of study was helpful since it enabled the inclusion of the
controlled trails along with the conduction of the nonrandomized studies. Both the groups
could be compared. Additionally the systematic review helped in considering the different
types of interventions that are carried out including the asylum seekers. Being a meta-analytic
method, different parameters and factors were included in carrying out the studies that helped
to increase the credibility of the study since different conditions was able to be included in
the study process. Inspite of the several advantages there were certain limitation which
included the unavailability of few references in full text. This created a possibility of biasness
as the studies were omitted. For such studies there is a requirement of feedback for the
reviews for which more detailed research is required (Filges et al., 2015).