This webinar will present quantitative strategies to assess the impact of unaddressed sources of bias and confounding in the interpretation of findings in observational research designs. Emphasis will be placed on the approach to and implementation of these methods, drawing heavily on the presenters' work recently published in the Journal of Dental Research. Following a general overview of the principles of bias and confounding in epidemiologic investigations, the presenters will engage participants through a detailed application of quantitative bias analysis to a prospective cohort study of preconception oral health in relation to time-to-pregnancy. Participation of students/trainees/researchers of all levels is highly encouraged.
Learning Objectives
- Present quantitative strategies to assess the impact of unaddressed sources of bias and confounding in the interpretation of findings observational research designs
- Discuss implementation strategies for unaddressed sources of bias and confounding in quantitative research
Sponsored by
IADR Behavioral, Epidemiologic and Health Services Research Group (BEHSR)
Speakers
Brenda is an Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Health Services Research and Associate Dean for Research at the University of Utah School of Dentistry. Her research interests include studying the potential for causal associations between periodontal disease and other health outcomes with a particulr focus on the validity of clinical and self-report measures of periodontitis for population-level research, and the assessment of potential sources of systematic bias and unmeasured confounding. In addition, she maintains a significant focus on the social production of oral health, with an overall goal of addressing the complex mechanisms responsible for the emergence of oral health disparities. Brenda has a wide range of experience conducting oral health research among less advantaged and minority populations, including residents of public housing, Black/African American women in the US, and American Indian/Alaska Native populations. In support of her research interests, she is the principal investigator on multiple active research grants from the NIH/NIDCR.
Julia obtained her PhD in Epidemiology from the Boston University School of Public Health. Her doctoral research, supported by a Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral Fellowship from the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, primarily focused on the relationship between preconception oral health and reproductive health outcomes. In addition, she has pursued research aimed at improving the utility of self-report measures of periodontitis to inform observational oral epidemiology. In particular, she has published on the validity of self-report measures of oral health conditions and approaches to bias management in observational epidemiology. She received an MPH in Epidemiology with a concentration in Maternal and Child Health from the University of Washington and a BA in Neuroscience from Bowdoin College.
Miguel obtained his DDS from the University of Cartagena (’08) and upon graduation; he enrolled in a dual-degree program to obtain his Master’s degree in Clinical Epidemiology and a certificate in Applied Statistics. He served as a tenured Associate Professor in the dental research department at the University of Cartagena until 2018 where he worked as interim chair of the same department and as visiting professor at the University of Verona in Italy. Upon moving to the United States, he started to work as a post-doctoral fellow researcher in oral epidemiology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Adams School of Dentistry under the supervision of Dr. Kimon Divaris (2018-2022) where he also completed his postdoctoral training in Pediatric Dentistry. Throughout his career, he has achieved several research awards including the prestigious American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry Graduate Student Research Award (2020), and the North Carolina AADOCR Research Day Award (2022). Since 2020, he has served as a member of the Executive Committee of the IADR Behavioral, Epidemiologic and Health Services Research Group (2019-2021: North America student representative and 2021-2023: Director for North America, present: Symposium coordinator). Currently, Miguel is an associate professor in pediatric dentistry in the division of pediatric and public health at the university of north Carolina at chapel hill.