Analyzing Repeated Measures on Generalized Linear Models via the Bootstrap

The analysis of longitudinal data for which the response variables have nonnormal error distributions previously has been complex and/or dependent on restrictive assumptions. In this paper simple methods are introduced for the class of generalized linear models (GLMs). Regressions are fit to the data at each observation time; functions of the resulting coefficients may be bootstrapped, or the coefficients combined through closed-form estimation of their covariances. Application is made to a data set on xerophthalmia in Indonesian children.