© 1987 by Biometrika Trust
MISCELLANEA |
A test to detect clusters of disease
Stanford University School of Medicine Stanford, California 94305, U.S.A.
A test is given to detect clustering in disease incidence or mortality data The test statistic is the mean distance between all pairs of disease cases. Its null mean and variance and its asymptotic normality are derived under assumptions that accommodate differences in population distribution among demographic subgroups at different disease risk. The test is illustrated on 63 cases of anal and rectal squamous cell carcinoma in San Francisco during 19731981.
Key Words: Multinomial distribution Poisson process Spatial clustering U-statistic