Andrade Chittaranjan
Dept. of Clinical Psychopharmacology and Neurotoxicology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore, Karnataka, India.
Indian J Psychol Med. 2022 Mar;44(2):189-191. doi: 10.1177/02537176211073764. Epub 2022 Feb 21.
In a cohort study, a group of subjects (the cohort) is followed for a period of time; assessments are conducted at baseline, during follow-up, and at the end of follow-up. Cohort studies are, therefore, empirical, longitudinal studies based on data obtained from a sample; they are also observational and (usually) naturalistic. Analyses can be conducted for the cohort as a whole or for subgroups amongst which comparisons can be drawn. Because there is no randomization to the subgroups of interest, cause and effect relationships cannot be determined, and relationships between variables must be stated as associations that may or may not be influenced by confounding. The cohort that is studied can be prospectively or retrospectively defined, and each method has its advantages and disadvantages. These and other issues are explained with the help of examples. A special note is made of cohort studies in Indian psychiatry.
在队列研究中，一组受试者（队列）会被随访一段时间；在基线期、随访期间以及随访结束时进行评估。因此，队列研究是基于从样本中获得的数据进行的实证性纵向研究；它们也是观察性的且（通常）是自然主义的。可以对整个队列或其中可进行比较的亚组进行分析。由于没有对感兴趣的亚组进行随机分组，所以无法确定因果关系，变量之间的关系必须表述为可能受混杂因素影响也可能不受其影响的关联。所研究的队列可以前瞻性地或回顾性地定义，每种方法都有其优缺点。借助实例对这些及其他问题进行了解释。特别提到了印度精神病学中的队列研究。
