Mediation Analysis for Sparse and Irregularly Spaced Longitudinal Outcomes with Application to the MrOS Sleep Study

Fuente: arXiv
Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Ren, Rui, Yang, Haoyi, Xiao, Qian, Xue, Lingzhou, Huang, Yuan
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1866909643928764416
author Ren, Rui
Yang, Haoyi
Xiao, Qian
Xue, Lingzhou
Huang, Yuan
author_facet Ren, Rui
Yang, Haoyi
Xiao, Qian
Xue, Lingzhou
Huang, Yuan
contents Mediation analysis has become a widely used method for identifying the pathways through which an independent variable influences a dependent variable via intermediate mediators. However, limited research addresses the case where mediators are high-dimensional and the outcome is represented by sparse, irregularly spaced longitudinal data. To address these challenges, we propose a mediation analysis approach for scalar exposures, high-dimensional mediators, and sparse longitudinal outcomes. This approach effectively identifies significant mediators by addressing two key issues: (i) the underlying correlation structure within the sparse and irregular cognitive measurements, and (ii) adjusting mediation effects to handle the high-dimensional set of candidate mediators. In the MrOS Sleep study, our primary objective is to explore lipid pathways that may mediate the relationship between rest-activity rhythms and longitudinal cognitive decline in older men. Our findings suggest a potential mechanism involving rest-activity rhythms, lipid metabolites, and cognitive decline, and highlight significant mediators identified through multiple testing procedures.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2506_07953
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Mediation Analysis for Sparse and Irregularly Spaced Longitudinal Outcomes with Application to the MrOS Sleep Study
Ren, Rui
Yang, Haoyi
Xiao, Qian
Xue, Lingzhou
Huang, Yuan
Methodology
Applications
Mediation analysis has become a widely used method for identifying the pathways through which an independent variable influences a dependent variable via intermediate mediators. However, limited research addresses the case where mediators are high-dimensional and the outcome is represented by sparse, irregularly spaced longitudinal data. To address these challenges, we propose a mediation analysis approach for scalar exposures, high-dimensional mediators, and sparse longitudinal outcomes. This approach effectively identifies significant mediators by addressing two key issues: (i) the underlying correlation structure within the sparse and irregular cognitive measurements, and (ii) adjusting mediation effects to handle the high-dimensional set of candidate mediators. In the MrOS Sleep study, our primary objective is to explore lipid pathways that may mediate the relationship between rest-activity rhythms and longitudinal cognitive decline in older men. Our findings suggest a potential mechanism involving rest-activity rhythms, lipid metabolites, and cognitive decline, and highlight significant mediators identified through multiple testing procedures.
title Mediation Analysis for Sparse and Irregularly Spaced Longitudinal Outcomes with Application to the MrOS Sleep Study
topic Methodology
Applications
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.07953