Field epidemiologic studies of populations exposed to waste dumps. 1983

C W Heath

Epidemiologic studies are required for assessing health risks related to toxic waste exposure. Since the settings in which such studies must be performed are extremely diverse, epidemiologic approaches must be versatile. For any particular study, three fundamental requirements are to assess what toxic materials are present, understand how human exposure may occur, and objectively measure possible biologic effects. In assessing links between exposure and disease, epidemiologists must be particularly aware of: expected disease frequencies in relation to the size of populations studied, implications of long or varied disease latencies for study design and competing causes of disease and associated confounding variables. These concepts are illustrated by discussion of epidemiologic studies related to the Love Canal toxic waste dump site in Niagara Falls, NY.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007220 Industrial Waste Worthless, damaged, defective, superfluous or effluent material from industrial operations. Waste, Industrial,Industrial Wastes,Wastes, Industrial
D007231 Infant, Newborn An infant during the first 28 days after birth. Neonate,Newborns,Infants, Newborn,Neonates,Newborn,Newborn Infant,Newborn Infants
D009518 New York State bounded on the north by Lake Ontario and Canada, on the east by Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, on the south by the Atlantic Ocean, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, and on the west by Pennsylvania, Lake Erie, and Canada.
D011247 Pregnancy The status during which female mammals carry their developing young (EMBRYOS or FETUSES) in utero before birth, beginning from FERTILIZATION to BIRTH. Gestation,Pregnancies
D012037 Refuse Disposal The discarding or destroying of garbage, sewage, or other waste matter or its transformation into something useful or innocuous. Waste Disposal, Solid,Disposal, Refuse,Disposal, Solid Waste,Disposals, Refuse,Disposals, Solid Waste,Refuse Disposals,Solid Waste Disposal,Solid Waste Disposals,Waste Disposals, Solid
D001724 Birth Weight The mass or quantity of heaviness of an individual at BIRTH. It is expressed by units of pounds or kilograms. Birthweight,Birth Weights,Birthweights,Weight, Birth,Weights, Birth
D002617 Chemical Industry The aggregate enterprise of manufacturing and technically producing chemicals. (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed) Industry, Chemical,Chemical Industries,Industries, Chemical
D004812 Epidemiologic Methods Research techniques that focus on study designs and data gathering methods in human and animal populations. Epidemiologic Method,Epidemiological Methods,Methods, Epidemiologic,Epidemiological Method,Method, Epidemiologic,Method, Epidemiological,Methods, Epidemiological
D005260 Female Females
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man

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