摘要:

A benchmark dose (BMD) is the dose of a substance that corresponds to a prescribed increase in the response (called the benchmark response or BMR) of a health effect. A statistical lower bound on the benchmark dose (BMDL) has been proposed as a replacement for the no‐observed‐adverse‐effect‐level (NOAEL) in setting acceptable human exposure levels. A method is developed in this paper for calculating BMDs and BMDLs from continuous data in a manner that is consistent with those calculated from quantal data. The method involves defining an abnormal response, either directly by specifying a cutoffx0that separates continuous responses into normal and abnormal categories, or indirectly by specifying the proportionP0of abnormal responses expected among unexposed subjects. The method does not involve actually dichotomizing individual continuous responses into quantal responses, and in certain cases can be applied to continuous data in summarized form (e.g., means and standard deviations of continuous responses among subjects in discrete dose groups). In addition to specifying the BMR and eitherx0orP0, the method requires specification of the distribution of continuous responses, including specification of the dose‐responseθ(d)for a measure of central tendency. A method is illustrated for selectingθ(d)to make the probability of an abnormal response any desired dose‐response function. This enables the same dose‐response model (Weibull, log‐logistic, etc.) to be used for the probability of an abnormal response, regardless of whether the underlying data are continuous or quantal. Whenever the continuous responses are normally distributed with standard deviationσ(independent of dose), the method is equivalent to defining the BMD as the dose corresponding to a prescribed change in the mean res

ISSN:0272-4332    

DOI:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1995.tb00095.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1995

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

After an extensive review and analysis of the scientific evidence on the respiratory health effects of passive smoking, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency concluded that environmental tobacco smoke causes lung cancer in adult nonsmokers and increases the risk of a variety of non‐cancer respiratory disorders, especially in children. This article is a response to claims in Dr. Gio Gori's article “Policy Against Science: The Case of Environmental Tobacco Smoke,” appearing in the same issue of this journal, that such conclusions are unwarranted. This response focuses only on the respiratory health effects of environmental tobacco

ISSN:0272-4332    

DOI:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1995.tb00096.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1995

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Book Reviews in this ArticleTheory of Moves By Steven J. BrainsPesticides in the Diets of Infants and Children By the National Research Council National Academy PressPublic Reactions to Nuclear Waste: Citizens’Views of Repository Siting Edited by Riley E. Dunlap, Michael E. Kraft, and Eugene A. RosaBureaucracy in Crisis: Three Mile Island, the Shuttle Challenger, and Risk Assessment By Maureen Hogan CasamayouMaking National Energy Policy Edited by Hans H. LandsbergPrevention and Control of Accidental Releases of Hazardous Gases By Vasilis M. FthenakisThe Measure of Environmental and Resource Values: Theory and Methods By A. Myrick FreemanThe Bottom Line of Green is Black: Strategies for Creating Profitable and Environmentally Sound Business By Tedd Saunders and Loretta McGovernThe Geological Aspects of Waste Management By Stephen M. TestaThe Great Earthquake meriment: Risk Communication and Public Action By Dennis S. Mileti and Colleen FitzpatrickExposure Factors Sourcebook By the American Industrial Health Counc

ISSN:0272-4332    

DOI:10.1111/j.1539-6924.1995.tb00097.x

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:1995

数据来源: WILEY