Epidemiology Flashcards
(91 cards)
___________ are concerned with the health of an individual; ___________ are concerned with
the collective health of the population in one or other area.
Clinicians; epidemiologists
the study of the distribution and determinants of health-related states or events in specified
populations and the application of this study to the control of health problems.
Epidemiology
Father of Epidemiology
• The first person known to have examined the relationships between the occurrence of disease and environmental influences.
• He coined the term ‘epidemic’ in his essay entitled “On Airs, Waters, and Places,”
Hippocrates, 400 BC
a London haberdasher who published his landmark analysis of mortality data in 1662. He was the first to quantify patterns of birth, death, and disease occurrence, noting male-female disparities, high infant mortality, urbanrural differences, and seasonal variations.
John Graunt
____________ wrote a book ‘Cholera’. He began to systematically collect and analyze Britain’s mortality statistics. He considered the father of modern vital statistics and surveillance, developed many of the basic practices used today in vital statistics and disease classification. He extended the epidemiologic analysis of morbidity and mortality data, looking at the effects of marital status, occupation, and altitude. He also developed many epidemiologic concepts and techniques still in use today.
William Farr
the ongoing systematic collection, analysis, and interpretation of outcome-specific data for use in planning, implementation, and evaluation of public health practice.
Surveillance
A fundamental science of public health, goal is to promote health, prevent and control disease, is achieved through studies that examine the relationship of disease and factors in the population.
Epidemiology
outbreak of disease in human population
Epidemic
outbreak of disease in animal population
Epizootic
outbreak of disease in bird population
Epornitics
to visit a community, I.e., a diseases which comes periodically, not present continuously
Epidemein
resides within (the diseases continuously present in a population)
Endemein
is the study of health-event, health-characteristic, or healthdeterminant patterns in a population. ___________ is the study of the distribution and determinants of healthrelated states or events in specified
populations, and the application of this study to the control of
health problems.” (Last JM, 1988)
Epidemiology
______________ inferentially acknowledges the epidemiologic character of population phenomena, for as its etymology indicates, (epi, upon;demos, people; logos, study), epidemiology is the study of what “comes upon” groups of people. More specifically epidemiology is concerned with the distribution of disease and death, and with their determinants and consequences in population groups.
Mayer
a) a quantitative basic science built on a working knowledge of probability, statistics, and sound research methods;
b) a method of causal reasoning based on developing and testing hypotheses pertaining to occurrence and prevention of morbidity and mortality; and
c) a tool for public health action to promote and protect the public’s health based on science, causal reasoning, and a dose of practical common
sense.
Epidemiology
Investigation and assessment of health and productivity related events in animal population.
Veterinary Epidemiology, Epizootology
Uses of Epidemiology
- Identify and measure the importance of health
problems, describe the high risk groups, and explain the cause of these problems. - Understand the natural history of disease
- Essential for disease surveillance and control
- Contributes to the planning, monitoring and evaluation of health services.
- Key instrument in the formulation of health/animal health policies.
Epidemiology assists
- “to identify the etiology or cause of a disease and the risk factors.”
- “to study the natural history and prognosis of disease”.
- “to evaluate new models of health care delivery.”
- “to provide a scientific foundation for regulatory decisions relating to health or environmental problems.
- “to provide a clue to changes taking place over time…”
- “to identify subgroups in the population who are at high risk for disease.”
- to determine the best or most appropriate types of primary and secondary prevention.’
– primary prevention prevents disease in healthy individual (vaccination).
– Secondary prevention limits disease by early detention usually through screening programs.
Goals of an epidemiologist
- Identify factors that cause disease or disease
transmission. - Prevent the spread of communicable and
non-communicable diseases and conditions. - He/she identifies and prevents disease in given population, while a clinician identifies and treats disease in an individual.
disease has not yet developed, but there are factors that favor its occurrence.
e.g., poor eating habits and fatigue resulting
from lack of sleep are risk factors that favor common cold and could occur if exposure to an
agent occurs at this time.
Susceptibility
Initial responses of the cell or immune system. If these adaptation responses are successful, then no disease occurs and the process is arrested.
Adaptation
No symptoms indicating the presence of illness.
Adaptation, however, has been unsuccessful and
pathogenic changes have begun. Changes may be
detectable by sophisticated laboratory tests, are called ______________ because they are below the level of the clinical horizon, an imaginary line dividing the point where there are detectable signs and symptoms from that where there are not.
Early pathogenesis; subclinical
- Disease is detectable through symptoms or signs during a physical examination.
- Sufficient anatomical or functional changes have occurred.
- Range from early clinical disease to advanced disease, and death.
- Possible outcomes: complete recovery, residual defect that produces some degree of disability or death.
Clinical disease
- Follows exposure of the host to an agent
- Occurs during the stage of susceptibility.
- Organism multiples to sufficient numbers to produce a host reaction and clinical symptoms.
- Relatively short, usually hours to months.
Incubation period
