[Key Measures in Epidemiology: Risk Difference, Relative Risk and Odds Ratio].

Abstract

In epidemiology, the relative frequency of a disease is expressed as the proportion of individuals affected, typically expressed as a percentage, or per thousand individuals. Another important measure is the odds, which represents the ratio of affected individuals to unaffected individuals, calculated by dividing by the proportion of affected individuals by the proportion of unaffected individuals. To assess whether a specific factor increases or decreases the risk of disease, researchers compare the proportion of affected individuals in an exposed group (where the factor is present) with an unexposed group (where the factor is absent). This comparison can be quantified using three key measures: Risk Difference (RD): The absolute difference in disease risk between the exposed and unexposed groups. Relative Risk (RR): The ratio of disease risk in the exposed group to that in the unexposed group. Odds Ratio (OR): The ratio of the odds of disease in the exposed group to the odds in the unexposed group. While risk reflects the proportion of individuals affected within a population, odds represent the ratio of affected to unaffected individuals. The OR is particularly useful in case-control studies because it can approximate the RR when diseases are rare, providing valuable insights even when direct risk calculations are not feasible.