ArticleGlobal epidemiology2021
Population attributable fraction in textbooks: Time to revise.
Article in Global epidemiology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 37 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
37 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Liver Cancer Risk and Incidence Attributable to Human Immunodeficiency Virus: A Meta-Analysis and Population-Attributable Modeling Study of Over 1.2 Million Individuals.International journal of cancer · 2026Pooled it
- Global, Regional and National Estimates of Hip Fracture Burden Associated with Type 2 Diabetes in Adults Aged Over 40 from 1990 to 2021 and Projections to 2046.Calcified tissue international · 2025Pooled it
- Global disparities in realized stroke prevention attributable to antihypertensive treatment: a population-level analysis of 198 countries, 1990-2019.European journal of epidemiology · 2026Article
- COVID-19 vaccination coverage and the effect on regional disparities in morbidity and mortality among older people in Sweden, 2021-2023.Scandinavian journal of public health · 2026Article
- Disparities in Atrial Fibrillation Metabolic Risk in Indonesia: Time for Sociodemographic Targeted Interventions.JACC. Asia · 2026Article
- Age- and sex-specific attributable impact of modifiable risk factors on atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease in Korea: a nationwide population-based cohort study.The Lancet regional health. Western Pacific · 2026Article
- [Apply the Miettinen Formula to Assess the Health Benefits of the PMSichuan da xue xue bao. Yi xue ban = Journal of Sichuan University. Medical science edition · 2026Article
- Projected cardiovascular mortality attributable to extreme temperatures under climate scenarios in Taiyuan, China.iScience · 2026Article
- Population-attributable burden of modifiable risk factors for depression and anxiety among reproductive-age women in Nepal.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Time to coronary angiography and revascularization in 575,247 patients with STEMI from 2012 to 2023: a retrospective population-based cohort study.The Lancet regional health. Europe · 2026Article
- The Economic Cost of Obesity: A Cost-of-Illness Study in Greece.Applied health economics and health policy · 2026Article
- Critical Appraisal of Causality Observational Studies: A Case-Study of the Effect of Tattoo on Malignant Lymphoma.International journal of preventive medicine · 2026Article
- Global and regional burden of liver cancer attributable to drug use in elderly patients: a 1990-2021 analysis from the GBD study.Frontiers in oncology · 2026Article
- Mortality attributable to modifiable lifestyle factors in the Spanish cohort of the European prospective investigation into cancer and nutrition (EPIC) study.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Ambient temperature and deaths from homicide in Brazil from 2010-2019: a nationwide space-time-stratified case-crossover study.American journal of epidemiology · 2025Article
- Global Estimates of the HPV-related, Noncervical Cancer Burden in People With HIV and AIDS and the Potential Effect of Improved HPV Vaccine Coverage in This Population: A Systematic Review, Meta-analysis and Modeling Study.Open forum infectious diseases · 2025Article
- Associations of Violence Against Women With Comorbid Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety Among Left-Behind Women in Rural China: Cross-Sectional Study.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2025Article
- Model-based estimation of the generalized impact fraction (GIF) and population attributable fraction (PAF) for interventions targeting risk factors affecting the five-year risk of diabetic retinopathy.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Positive Childhood Experiences and Adult Health and Opportunity Outcomes in 4 US States.JAMA network open · 2025Article
- Relationship of tobacco smoking to cause-specific mortality: contemporary estimates from Australia.BMC medicine · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Introduction: The population attributable fraction is an important measure for assessing the impact of intervention on the disease risk in populations, but it is frequently misused in the research literature. Methods: In this study, we review the definition, calculation, interpretation and assumptions of PAF in 43 textbooks and highlight important shortcomings. Results: While the Levin formula was proposed as a method of calculation in 29 (67%) textbooks, only in 4 (9%) was the Miettinen formula or its generalization for multilevel exposure recommended to calculate a confounding-adjusted population attributable fraction. Other concepts such as generalized impact fraction and prevented and preventable fractions were briefly discussed in few textbooks. Discussion: We recommend the authors revise the textbooks in light of our proposed framework for teaching the population attributable fraction.
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