An Approach for Modeling Constant and Variable Demographic and Exposure Information Across Individuals. P. S. Price, Ogden Environmental and Energy Services, Portland, ME; J. Y. Young, Hampshire Research Institute, Alexandria, VA; and C. F. Chaisson, CFC Consulting, Annandale, VA
Recent efforts in simulating the interindividual variability and exposure to pesticides and other materials has required modelers to consider inputs that change over time in different ways and different rates. Certain exposure related parameters such as gender and ethnic background are constant over an individual’s life, while others such as height, surface area and body weight vary in predictable patterns of small daily changes across an individual’s life. Other factors remain constant for long periods of time and then change radically over a few days (examples of these factors include those factors related to residence and individuals’ occupations). Finally, other factors vary from day-to-day in ways that have both random and non-random components. For example, use of a pesticide on a specific day may be random (in the sense that the pesticide’s use on a Monday is equally likely as the use on a Tuesday of the same week) but influenced by factors such as: season, region, type of residence and time since prior use. It is important that models of interindividual variation recognize these differences when assigning values to the equations that determine doses across multiple days. This paper represents a system for modeling these factors and provides an example of how demographics and other exposure information are modeled for lifetime exposures to pesticides.
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