Estimation of Excess Risk from Case-Control Data Using Aalen's Linear Regression Model

Methods for statistical inference in Aalen's non-parametric linear regression model of disease incidence from nested case-control data provide the basis for estimation of excess risk as a linear function of dose and absolute risk for a given exposure history.

Abstract

We introduce methods for statistical inference in Aalen's non-parametric linear regression model of disease incidence (Aalen, 1989, Statistics in Medicine 8, 907-925) from nested case-control data. These methods provide the basis for estimation of excess risk as a linear function of dose and absolute risk for a given exposure history. The methods are illustrated by estimating excess and absolute risks associated with radon exposure and smoking from nested case-control samples from the Colorado Plateau uranium miners cohort.