HADM 379 - INTRODUCTION TO EPIDEMIOLOGY COMPLETE STUDY & EXAM NOTES 2023/2024
Unit 1: Introduction to Epidemiology
Epidemiology: the study of the
... [Show More] distribution and determinants of healthrelated states or events in specified populations and applying it to the
prevention and control of health problems
• Is a fundamental science of public health: determination of the etiology
(cause and risk factors) and burden of disease?
• Improves population health by providing recommendations for
implementing change to health policy and evaluating existing health
measures. Note: there is often a significant delay between identifying
epidemiologic evidence and applying it to health policy
• Is essential to identifying and mapping emerging diseases
• Aims to reduce health disparities by promoting equity and accessibility
Term Explanation
Study Includessurveillance, observation, hypothesistesting,
analytic research and experiments
Distribution Analysis of times, persons, places, and classes of persons
affected
Determinants Factors which influence health: biological, chemical, physical,
social, cultural, environmental, economic, genomic and
behavioral
Health-related states
and events
Refersto diseases, causes of death, lifestyle behaviorssuch as
smoking, positive health states, reactionsto preventative
regimes, provision and use of health services.
Specified Populations Persons with identifiable characteristics, such as occupational
groups
Application to
Prevention and Control
Aims of public health: to promote, protect and restore health
Unit 2: Measuring the Occurrence of Disease
Occurrence of disease and its impact can be expressed in several different
ways (incidence and prevalence) and can be further classified as measures
of morbidity (illness), or mortality (death).
Measures of disease morbidity and mortality are obtained via surveillance:
the ongoing systematic collection, analysis, and interpretation of health data
essential to the planning, implementation, and evaluation of public health
practice closely integrated with the timely dissemination of data to those
who need to know.
Incidence: the number of new cases of a disease occurring during a specific
period of time in a population at risk for developing that disease.
• Is a measure of events and a measure of risk of becoming ill, and is the
main measure of an acute disease.
• A population at risk must be a defined group,such as an age group,
males or females, or a group exposed to a certain risk factor.
• Usually expressed as incidence per 1000 people
• Incidence rate is calculated as follows when all people at risk are
observed throughout a defined time period (this is also known as
cumulative incidence) [Show Less]