From: Comparative quantification of health risks: Conceptual framework and methodological issues
Accumulative Risk Function, Æ’(x) | Interpretation | Relative Risk, RR | Example |
---|---|---|---|
| Relative risk depends only on current exposure, with no contribution from past exposure. |
| Instantaneous poisoning as a result of exposure to high levels of toxic chemicals; injuries or death in accidents due to binge drinking; infection with Hepatitis B or C as a result of an infected injection |
Æ’(x) = 1 | Relative risk depends on the accumulated exposure (or average exposure if normalized with respect to exposure time), without any effects from the temporal distribution of exposure. |
| Cancer risk from life-time exposure to carcinogens which have no threshold level |
| Relative risk depends on current and past exposures. But the role of past exposure lasts for a limited time, K, and decline as a linear function of time. |
| Â |
Æ’(x) = e a(t-T) | Relative risk depends on current and past exposures. But the role of past exposure decays as an exponential function of time. |
| Â |