On semiparametric estimation of a path-specific effect in the presence of mediator-outcome confounding.

ABSTRACT: Path-specific effects constitute a broad class of mediated effects from an exposure to an outcome via one or more causal pathways along a set of intermediate variables. Most of the literature concerning estimation of mediated effects has focused on parametric models, with stringent assumptions regarding unmeasured confounding. We consider semiparametric inference of a path-specific effect when these assumptions are relaxed. In particular, we develop a suite of semiparametric estimators for the effect along a pathway through a mediator, but not through an exposure-induced confounder of that mediator. These estimators have different robustness properties, as each depends on different parts of the likelihood of the observed data. One estimator is locally semiparametric efficient and multiply

SUBMITTER: Miles BCH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7773030 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature