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Author: Martin, Chantel L.
Resulting in 1 citation.
1. LeMasters, Katherine
Renson, Audrey
Zalla, Lauren
Martin, Chantel L.
Edwards, Jessie K.
Understanding the Accumulation of Health-related Inequities over the Life Course Using the Mean Cumulative Count
American Journal of Epidemiology published online (22 May 2023): DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwad123.
Also: https://academic.oup.com/aje/advance-article/doi/10.1093/aje/kwad123/7176017
Cohort(s): NLSY97
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
Keyword(s): Health/Health Status/SF-12 Scale; Life Course; Stress

Understanding how health inequities develop over time is necessary to inform interventions, but methods to do so are underutilized. We provide an example of the accumulation of stressful life events using the mean cumulative count (MCC), which estimates the expected number of events per person as a function of time, allowing for censoring and competing events. Data come from the National Longitudinal Survey on Youth 1997, a nationally representative data set. To compare the MCC with standard practice, we present the proportion experiencing 1, 2, and 3+ stressful events and the cumulative probability of experiencing at least 1 event by end of follow-up. Our sample included 6,522 individuals ages 18-33 followed for a median of 14 years. Using the MCC, by age 20, the expected number of encounters was 56 events/100 for Black non-Hispanic, 47/100 for White non-Hispanic, and 50/100 for Hispanic persons. By age 33, inequities grew to 117, 99, and 108 events/100, respectively. The MCC revealed that inequities in stressful events accumulate over early adulthood, partially driven by repeat events; this information was not evident from conventional approaches. This method can be used to identify intervention points for disrupting the accumulation of repeat events to improve health equity.
Bibliography Citation
LeMasters, Katherine, Audrey Renson, Lauren Zalla, Chantel L. Martin and Jessie K. Edwards. "Understanding the Accumulation of Health-related Inequities over the Life Course Using the Mean Cumulative Count." American Journal of Epidemiology published online (22 May 2023): DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwad123.