Pang D
Institute of Occupational Health, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, UK.
Occup Environ Med. 1999 Jan;56(1):67-9. doi: 10.1136/oem.56.1.67.
To calculate relative powers for nested case-control studies for different values of both relative risk and numbers of controls per case, given a fixed number of cases available for analysis.
Algebraic and numerical methods.
In nested case-control studies, statistical power is a function of relative risk, rarity of exposure, number of case-control sets, and the number of controls per case.
The dictum that sufficient power will be obtained in a nested case-control study by selecting only four controls per case cannot be sustained. Appropriate numbers need to be calculated for specific studies.