Hamajima N
Department of Public Health, Gifu University School of Medicine.
Nihon Koshu Eisei Zasshi. 1991 Aug;38(8):541-5.
The role epidemiology in courts has become increasingly important both in the United States and in Japan, especially in the field of product liability. In the United States, attributable risk percent (AR%) is used in civil trials as a measure to judge whether alleged factors caused health disturbances of plaintiffs. Most epidemiologists believe that an AR% of more than 50%, ie, relative risk more than 2, supports causality of alleged factors, because "preponderance of evidence" is regarded as a fundamental legal rule in the United States. In Japan, judges in courts require a more strict standard for proof of facts, which means that a much higher AR% may be needed to convince judges. The role of epidemiologists in courts may be to show a plausible range of AR%, based on design, execution, and analysis of quoted epidemiologic studies. Standards for accepting plaintiffs' allegation should be discussed in the legal framework of Japan.
在美国和日本，流行病学在法庭上的作用变得越来越重要，尤其是在产品责任领域。在美国，归因危险百分比（AR%）在民事审判中被用作判断所称因素是否导致原告健康问题的一种度量。大多数流行病学家认为，AR%超过50%，即相对危险度超过2，支持所称因素的因果关系，因为“证据优势”在美国被视为一项基本法律规则。在日本，法庭上的法官对事实证明要求更严格的标准，这意味着可能需要更高的AR%才能说服法官。流行病学家在法庭上的作用可能是基于所引用的流行病学研究的设计、实施和分析，展示一个合理的AR%范围。在日本的法律框架内，应该讨论接受原告指控的标准。
