Triangulation in Environmental Epidemiology for EPA Human Health Assessments: Proceedings of a Workshop

By: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and Division on Earth and Life Studies and Board on Environmental Studies and Toxicology

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Synopsis: Human health risk assessments provide the basis for public health decision-making and chemical regulation in the United States. Three evidence streams generally support the development of human health risk assessments - epidemiology, toxicology, and mechanistic information. Epidemiologic studies are generally the preferred evidence stream for assessing causal relationships during hazard identification. However, the available studies may be limited in scope, subject to bias, or otherwise inadequate to inform causal inferences. In addition, there are challenges in assessing coherence, validity, and reliability during synthesis of individual epidemiological studies with different designs, which in turn affects conclusions on causation.