M. Hossein Rahbar, PhD Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics Division of Biostatistics Department of Epidemiology PhD, 1988 (Statistics) Michigan State University, East Lansing B-648 West Fee Hall Department of Epidemiology College of Human Medicine Michigan State University East Lansing, MI  48824 Telephone: (517) 353-8623 x137 Fax: (517) 432-1130 E-mail:  rahbar@msu.edu Community of Science Expertise Profile

Dr Rahbar is a Professor in the Biostatistics Division of the Department of Epidemiology and an Adjunct Professor in the department of Statistics and Probability at MSU.   During 2001-2005, he served as the founding director of Michigan State University (MSU) Data Coordinating Center (DCC).  Prior to coming to MSU, he was instrumental in setting up the Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics in the Department of Community Health Sciences (CHS) at the Aga Khan University (AKU) in Karachi, Pakistan.  He served as Director, MSc. Epidemiology & Biostatistics program, 1996-2001, Head, Epidemiology & Biostatistics Division, 1999-2001, a member of Board of Graduate Studies, 1997-2001, a member of the University Research Council, 1998-2001, and a member of the University Academic Council, 2000-2001.  During 1988-1994, he was a faculty in the department of Mathematics at University of Wisconsin –La Crosse (UW-L) and collaborated with researchers and clinicians on the studies of dyslexia and learning disabilities at Gundersen Medical Foundation.  

Dr Rahbar has published in the area of sequential statistical procedures, based on randomly right-censored data. He has also developed new nonparametric estimation procedures based on regression techniques using censored data.  Currently, he serves as the Principal Investigator on a grant funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for data coordination of two national multicenter studies on autism and other developmental disabilities.  As the principal investigator, he also completed a study assessing the blood lead concentrations among children living in Karachi, Pakistan, funded by the Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office of the World Health Organization (WHO).

Dr Rahbar also collaborates with Professor Joseph C Gardiner, Director, Division of Biostatistics in the department of Epidemiology at MSU, in a study on “Use of Regression Models in Cost-Effectiveness Analysis”, supported by the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research.  Among his current collaborations with clinical and epidemiologic investigators are, the study of Pregnancy Outcomes and Community Health (POUCH) funded by the NICHD, a phase 1 multicenter study of thyroid hormone in prematures and three other cancer related investigations funded by the National Institute of Cancer (NCI). 

Dr Rahbar is author/co-author of more than 70 peer-reviewed publications in international journals.  He is the director of MSU Clinical Epidemiology Research & Training Center (CERTC), and serves as an executive member of the Canadian – USA Clinical Epidemiology Network (CanUSACLEN).    His future plans include expansion of his collaborations in research and education with the faculty in the International Clinical Epidemiology Network (INCLEN) as well as with his colleagues at AKU.

Selected Publications

Rahbar MH.  Sequential Fixed Width Confidence Intervals for Regression Parameters from Censored Data with a Discrete Covariate. Sequential Analysis, 1995, 14(2):143-156.

Rahbar MH, Gardiner JC.  Nonparametric Estimation of Regression Parameters using Censored Data with a Discrete Covariate. Statistics and Probability Letters, 1995, 24,13-20.

Rahbar MH.  Nonparametric Estimation of Regression Parameters from Censored Data with Two Discrete Covariates. Lifetime Data: Models in Reliability and Survival Analysis, 1996, 257-262. Kluwer Academic Publisher, Netherlands.

Rahbar MH, Vellani C, Sajan F, Zaidi AA, Akbarali, L. Predictability of medical student’s performance at the Aga Khan University from admission test scores, interview ratings and system of education. Medical Education, 2001; 35(4):374-80.

Ahmed SE, Rahbar MH.  Shrinkage and pretest non-parametric estimation of regression parameters from censored data with multiple observations at each level of covariate. Biometrical Journal, 2000, 42(4):511-525.

Rahbar MH, White F, Agboatwalla M, Hozhabri S, Luby S.  Factors associated with elevated blood lead concentrations among children in Karachi, Pakistan.  Bull World Health Organ 2002; 80(10):769-775.

Rahbar MH, Sikorskii A, Gardiner JC.  Regression analysis of medical costs with right censored data in the presence of discrete covariates.  Proceedings of the 2003 Joint Statistical Meetings-Biometrics Section-to include ENAR & WNAR, 2003, pg. 3405-3410.

Rahbar MH, Gardiner JC.  Nonparametric Modeling of the Mean Survival Time in a Multi-factor Design Based on Randomly Right-Censored Data.  Biometrical Journal, 46 (2004) 5, 497-502.

Gardiner JC, Sirbu CM, Rahbar MH.  Update on statistical power and sample size assessments for cost-effectiveness studies.  Expert Rev. Pharmacoeconomics Outcomes Res. 2004; 4(1):89-98.