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The impact of handling missing data on alcohol consumption estimates in the UK women cohort study - European Journal of Epidemiology

  • ️Greenwood, D. C.
  • ️Wed Sep 02 2009

Abstract

We discuss methods for dealing with incomplete-data in the United Kingdom Women’s Cohort Study. We demonstrate by example how important it is to address the issues related to missing data with statistical integrity, illustrate the deficiencies of a data-reduction and a single-imputation method, and discuss how the method of multiple imputation overcomes them. Although the method entails some complexity, the computational activities can be organized in such a way that efficient analyses can be conducted by analysts who are not acquainted with all the details of the imputation method and who wish to rely on software they use and regard as standard.

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Abbreviations

UKWCS:

UK women cohort study

FFQ:

Food frequency questionnaire

WCRF:

World cancer research fund

MAR:

Missing at random

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Cancer Research UK Cancer Survival Group, Non-Communicable Disease Epidemiology Unit, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel St, London, WC1E 7HT, UK

    U. Nur

  2. Departament d’Economia i Empresa, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Ramon Trias Fargas 25–27, 08005, Barcelona, Spain

    N. T. Longford

  3. Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9LN, UK

    J. E. Cade & D. C. Greenwood

Authors

  1. U. Nur

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  2. N. T. Longford

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  3. J. E. Cade

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  4. D. C. Greenwood

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Corresponding author

Correspondence to U. Nur.

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Nur, U., Longford, N.T., Cade, J.E. et al. The impact of handling missing data on alcohol consumption estimates in the UK women cohort study. Eur J Epidemiol 24, 589–595 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10654-009-9384-1

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  • Received: 19 March 2009

  • Accepted: 17 August 2009

  • Published: 02 September 2009

  • Issue Date: October 2009

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10654-009-9384-1

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