Validity over time of self-reported anthropometric variables during follow-up of a large cohort of UK women

BMC Medical Research Methodology

on behalf of the Million Women Study collaborators¹  Benjamin J. Cairns¹  Valerie Beral¹  Gillian Reeves¹  Jane Green¹  F. Lucy Wright¹ 

[1] Cancer Epidemiology Unit, Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, Richard Doll Building, Old Road Campus, Headington, Oxford OX3 7LF, UK

关键词: Validation;    Self-report;    Longitudinal study;    Body size;    Anthropometry;   

Others  :  1228741
DOI  :  10.1186/s12874-015-0075-1

 received in 2015-03-16, accepted in 2015-09-28,  发布年份 2015

【 摘 要 】

Background

In prospective epidemiological studies, anthropometry is often self-reported and may be subject to reporting errors. Self-reported anthropometric data are reasonably accurate when compared with measurements made at the same time, but reporting errors and changes over time in anthropometric characteristics could potentially generate time-dependent biases in disease-exposure associations.

Methods

In a sample of about 4000 middle-aged UK women from a large prospective cohort study, we compared repeated self-reports of weight, height, derived body mass index, and waist and hip circumferences, obtained between 1999 and 2008, with clinical measurements taken in 2008. For self-reported and measured values of each variable, mean differences, correlation coefficients, and regression dilution ratios (which measure relative bias in estimates of linear association) were compared over time.

Results

For most variables, the differences between self-reported and measured values were small. On average, reported values tended to be lower than measured values (i.e. under-reported) for all variables except height; under-reporting was greatest for waist circumference. As expected, the greater the elapsed time between self-report and measurement, the larger the mean differences between them (each P < 0.001 for trend), and the weaker their correlations (each P < 0.004 for trend). Regression dilution ratios were in general close to 1.0 and did not vary greatly over time.

Conclusion

Reporting errors in anthropometric variables may result in small biases to estimates of associations with disease outcomes. Weaker correlations between self-reported and measured values would result in some loss of study power over time. Overall, however, our results provide new evidence that self-reported anthropometric variables remain suitable for use in analyses of associations with disease outcomes in cohort studies over at least a decade of follow-up.

【 授权许可】

   
2015 Wright et al.

【 图 表 】

Fig. 1.

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