A final argument for using the prevalence ratio is that sometimes we are interested in prevalence itself, rather than incidence, and that in this situation the prevalence ratio is clearly the effect measure of interest for example, when we are concerned about the public health burden of disease.
We also present disparities in undernutrition using the prevalence ratio (PR) [18], which is a better estimate than the odds ratio when the outcome is not a rare event.
Several alternatives have been discussed in the literature for the analysis of binary outcomes in cross-sectional (or longitudinal) studies using the prevalence ratio rather than the odds ratio.
The case for using the prevalence ratio essentially reduces to the assertion that it is obviously the better measure whereas the odds ratio is "unintelligible," and that when a disease is common the prevalence ratio and the POR may differ substantially.
However, this "problem" with using the prevalence ratio is more imaginary than real because standard methods can be used to model prevalences, just as they can be used to model risks (both prevalence and risk are expressed as a proportion; Tables 1 and 2).
The relative risk of each sequela was estimated using the prevalence ratio of the specific sequela between HCV-positive and HCV-negative people, and the 95% CI, stratified by at-risk group, from 1997 to 2001.
We weighted the prevalence of flight attendant conditions to match the age distribution in the NHANES and compared the two populations stratified by gender using the Standardized Prevalence Ratio (SPR).
Of landscapers who used a power blower, 15% were seropositive, compared to 2% who did not use a power blower (prevalence ratio 9.2; 95% confidence interval 1.2 to 69.0; p=0.02).
Of landscapers who used a power blower, 15% (11/72) were seropositive, compared to 2% (1/60) of landscapers who did not use this tool (prevalence ratio 9.2; 95% CI 1.2 to 69.0; p=0.02) (Table 2).
Findings were similar when surveillance sensitivity was estimated using a design prevalence of 10-6, where sensitivity ratios assuming no difference in the risk of infection with age and an increased risk of infection in younger children both approximated 0.32.
