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. 2004 Aug 3;112(14):1440–1445. doi: 10.1289/ehp.7145

Table 1.

Uses and limitations of hazard data, exposure data, and HOD.

Uses Limitations
Hazard data
 Regulatory compliance Not representative of individual exposures
 Standard setting Gaps in geographic coverage of monitors
 Policymaking High percentage of nondetected values in data
 Characterization of pollution sources Sampling and measurement errors are often unknown
Reflect current levels of pollutants
Insufficient data quantity for trend analysis
Objectives for monitoring vary across environmental media
Exposure data
 Indicator of individual exposure to a hazard Data rarely available at the individual level
 Required to link hazard with health outcome Misclassification of exposure
Difficult to account for multiple exposure pathways
Exposure models based on assumptions and uncertainties not included in statistical analysis
Lack of data amount, frequency, and duration of exposure
Variability within populations impedes generalizing exposure
Difficult to reconstruct past exposure
Health outcome data
 Describes health status of populations Data completeness
 Describes distribution and frequency of disease Misclassification of disease
Generalizability to population
Confidentiality issues (HIPAAa)
All three types of data
Completeness of records
Timeliness of reporting
Availability of access to data
Geographic resolution of the data (scale)
Frequency of data collection
Lack of data collection standards