Sibling Comparison Studies

Abstract

Unmeasured confounding is one of the main sources of bias in observational studies. A popular way to reduce confounding bias is to use sibling comparisons, which implicitly adjust for several factors in the early environment or upbringing without requiring them to be measured or known. In this article we provide a broad exposition of the statistical analysis methods for sibling comparison studies. We further discuss a number of methodological challenges that arise in sibling comparison studies.

Topics & Concepts