Articles of this chapter describes the principles and tools of epidemiological research. These articles focus on the assessment of exposure experienced by workers and the diseases that appear in these populations. This chapter also raises other ques-tions relating to the development of valuable conclusions on the possible causal links between exposure to hazardous substances and the onset of disease.
determine the history of exposures to which a person has been subjected throughout their working life is the core of the epidemiology of work. Information which can facilitate an epidemiological study depends, first, the quality and extent of available data on exposure. Second, the effects on health (or disease) of interest to the epidemiologist's work must be accurately determined in a group of workers clearly defined and accessible. Finally, the epidemiologist should have data on other factors that may influence the outcome of interest, so any effect of occupational exposures which is shown in the study could be attributed to occupational exposure per se, rather than to other causes known of the disease in question. For example, in a group of workers exposed to a chemical substance which is suspected to cause cancer of the lung, some workers may smoke or have smoked, this being another cause of lung cancer. In this case, epidemiologists are working to determine what exposure (or what risk factors: the chemical, snuff or a combination of both) is responsible for the increased risk of lung cancer in the group workers studied.
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