ArticleDeutsches Arzteblatt international2020
Methods for Evaluating Causality in Observational Studies.
Article in Deutsches Arzteblatt international, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 32 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
32 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
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- Periodontal outcomes of children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis.European archives of paediatric dentistry : official journal of the European Academy of Paediatric Dentistry · 2022Pooled it
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- Associations of Glycemic Control and Diabetes Duration With Dupuytren Disease in Men and Women With Type 1 and 2 Diabetes.Plastic and reconstructive surgery. Global open · 2026Article
- Physical activity levels, sleep quality and perceived stress in Chilean students: a cross-sectional study.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2026Article
- Multicenter evaluation of a digital screening tool for early identification of temporomandibular disorder risk in Colombian and Mexican adults.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Article
- Physical activity promotion practice within primary care: a cross-sectional survey of primary care health professionals in England.BMJ open · 2025Article
- Long-Term Obesity and Biological Aging in Young Adults.JAMA network open · 2025Article
- Use of Tranexamic Acid in Abdominoplasty: The Importance of Timely Administration. Letter to "Influence of Tranexamic Acid in Body Contouring Surgery: Significant Changes on Complication Rates After Abdominoplasty".Aesthetic plastic surgery · 2025Article
- Core concepts in statistics and research methods. Part 2: clinical research principles and observational studies.BJA education · 2025Review
- A Pseudo-Value Approach to Causal Deep Learning of Semi-Competing Risks.Arabian journal of mathematics · 2025Article
- Understanding Alcohol Consumption and Its Antecedents and Consequences in Daily Life: The Why and the How.Current topics in behavioral neurosciences · 2025Review
- [Early childhood intervention and children's health development : Exemplary findings and methodological challenges in the use of the school entry examination].Bundesgesundheitsblatt, Gesundheitsforschung, Gesundheitsschutz · 2024Article
- Interrupted Time Series for Assessing the Causality of Intervention Effects. Part 35 of a Series on Evaluating Scientific Publications.Deutsches Arzteblatt international · 2024Review
- Integrating predictive modeling and causal inference for advancing medical science.Childhood kidney diseases · 2024Review
- Validation of causal inference data using DirectLiNGAM in an environmental small-scale model and calculation settings.MethodsX · 2024Article
- Mediation Analysis in Medical Research.Deutsches Arzteblatt international · 2023Review
- Article
- Machine learning models for 180-day mortality prediction of patients with advanced cancer using patient-reported symptom data.Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation · 2023Article
- Causal relationship between osteoarthritis with atrial fibrillation and coronary atherosclerosis: a bidirectional Mendelian randomization study of European ancestry.Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundIn clinical medical research, causality is demonstrated b controlled trials (RCTs). Often, however, an RCT cannot be conducted for ethical reasons, and sometimes for practical reasons as well. In such cases, knowledge can be derived from an observational study instead. In this article, we present two methods that have not been widely used in medical research to date.
methodsThe methods of assessing causal inferences in observational studies are described on the basis of publications retrieved by a selective literature search.
resultsTwo relatively new approaches-regression-discontinuity methods and interrupted time series-can be used to demonstrate a causal relationship under certain circumstances. The regression-discontinuity design is a quasi-experimental approach that can be applied if a continuous assignment variable is used with a threshold value. Patients are assigned to different treatment schemes on the basis of the threshold value. For assignment variables that are subject to random measurement error, it is assumed that, in a small interval around a threshold value, e.g., cholesterol values of 160 mg/dL, subjects are assigned essentially at random to one of two treatment groups. If patients with a value above the threshold are given a certain treatment, those with values below the threshold can serve as control group. Interrupted time series are a special type of regression-discontinuity design in which time is the assignment variable, and the threshold is a cutoff point. This is often an external event, such as the imposition of a smoking ban. A before-and-after comparison can be used to determine the effect of the intervention (e.g., the smoking ban) on health parameters such as the frequency of cardiovascular disease.
conclusionThe approaches described here can be used to derive causal inferences ies. They should only be applied after the prerequisites for their use have been carefully checked.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.