Epidemiology

PhotoCredit: Epidemiology.UCSD.Edu

Epidemiology

• the study of occurences and distribution of diseases as well as the distribution and determinants of health states or events in a specified population, and the application of this study to the control of health problems
• this emphasizes that epidemiologists are concerned not only with deaths, illness and disability, but also with more positive health states and with the means to improve health
• backbone of the prevention of disease

Uses of Epidemiology (Morris)

• Study the history of the health population and the rise and fall of diseases and changes in their character
• Diagnose the health of the community and the condition of the people to mesaure the distribution and dimension of illness in terms of incidence, prevalence, disability and mortality, to set health problems in perspective and to define their relative importance and to identify groups needing special attention
• study the work of health services with a view of improving them. Operational research shows how community expectations can result in the actual provisions of service
• Estimate the risk of disease, accident, defects and the chances of avoiding them
• Identify syndromes by describing the distribution and association of clinical phenomena in the population
• Complete the clinical picture of chronic disease and describe their natural history
• Search for cause of health and disease and describe their natural history that are clearly defined by their composition, inheritance, experience, behavior and environments

Epidemiologic Triangle

• model implies that each must be analyzed and understood for comprehensions and prediction of patterns of a disease
• a change in any of the component will alter an existing equilibrium to increase or decrease the frequency of the disease