EPIDEMIOLOGY:

The Basic Science of Public Health

BALTOLORE, Rotchelle
DAPAR, Sophia Marie
DESEBAYLA, Cydelle

EPIDEMIOLOGY
 The diagnostic discipline of public health
 A major part of public health’s assesment function
 Investigates causes of diseases
 Identifies trends in disease occurrence
 Evaluates effectiveness of medical and public health interventions
 An observational science

PATTERNS OF DISEASE OCCURENCE

 Who is getting the disease?

* age, sex, race/ethnicity, socio-economic status, behaviours
 When did they get the disease?
* incubation period, onset of symptoms, infectious period, seasonability and epidemic
 Where is the disease occurring?
* Geographic distribution, home, work, school, and hospital room
 From this information, epidemiologists can infer why the disease is occurring.

EPIDEMIC SURVEILLANCE

 Endemic vs. Epidemic

 Notifiable diseases
 Recognition of new disease
 Increased importance with threat of bio-terrorism

OUTBREAK INVESTIGATION

 Verify the diagnosis

 Construct a working case definition
 Find cases systematically – active surveillance
 Ask the who, where, and when questions to describe the epidemic by person, place, and time.
Consider the incubation period
 Look for common source of exposure
WHAT HAS EPIDEMIOLOGY CONTRIBUTED TO PEOPLES UNDERSTANDING OF
a. ) Heart Disease?
* Decline in CVD Death Rates
* Advances in Prevention
b. ) Lung Cancer?
* Contemporary epidemiologic research on lung cancer now focuses on a new set of issues.

EPIDEMIOLOGY AND CHRONIC DISEASES

 Identify risk factors
 Observe long term-trends
 Heart disease- leading cause of death in U.S.
 Lung Cancer and smoking- early 1950s