Reconciling conflicting results from target trials assessing the long-term effects of bariatric surgery
Department of Epidemiology Seminar Series
Speaker:
Sebastian Haneuse, PhD
Professor of Biostatistics; Director of Graduate Studies Program
Department of Biostatistics at Harvard Chan School of Public Health
Abstract: A large body of observational evidence exists to suggest that bariatric surgery is associated with reduction in risk for a wide range of outcomes, including cardiovascular disease (CVD). A recent study, however, suggested that much of that prior work is flawed in that it suffers from oversimplified definitions of the intervention, eligibility criteria, and follow-up. Furthermore, using the target trial emulation framework and data from the Veterans Administration (VA), results are presented as providing no evidence of benefit regarding CVD. In this talk, we present new results using data from Kaiser Permanente and an emulated trial that mimics the methods employed in the VA data which suggest benefit. We discuss possible mechanisms by which the discrepant results can be reconciled and conclude with an open discussion of what standards we should be using as we label work as being flawed.
Bio: Sebastian Haneuse is a Professor of Biostatistics and the Director of Graduate Studies Program in the Department of Biostatistics at Harvard Chan School of Public Health.