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Epidemiology, Prevalence and Incidence

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Epidemiology

It is the study of how often diseases occur in different groups of people and why, and is used to plan and
evaluate strategies to prevent illness and as a guide to the management of patients in whom disease has already
developed.[1] Epidemiology is often described as the basic science of public health.[2]

Epidemiology is 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 [3]

The CDC[2] break this definition down into the important principles of epidemiology:

Study - a scientific discipline with sound methods of scientific inquiry at its foundation. Various methods can
be used to carry out epidemiological investigations: surveillance and descriptive studies can be used to study
distribution; analytical studies are used to study determinants.[4]

Distribution - the frequency (number of health events in a population and it's relationship of that number to
the size of the population - prevalence) and pattern (the occurrence of health-related events by time, place, and
person - incidence) of health events in a population.

Determinants - the causes and other factors that influence the occurrence of disease and other health-related
events.

Health-related states or events - these may include communicable and non-communicable diseases,
chronic diseases, injuries, birth defects, maternal-child health, occupational health, and environmental health.
More recently studies have included behaviours related to health and well-being and genetic markers of disease
risk.

Specified populations - the epidemiologist is concerned about the collective health of the people in a
community or population[2]. A key feature of epidemiology is the measurement of disease outcomes in relation
to a population at risk.[1] Implicit in any epidemiological investigation is the notion of a target population about
which conclusions are to be drawn and are often observations that can only be made on a study sample, which
is selected in some way from the target population.[1]

Application - Epidemiology is not just “the study of” health in a population; it also involves applying the
knowledge gained by the studies to community-based practice.

Epidemiology is the study (scientific, systematic, data-driven) of the distribution (frequency, pattern) and
determinants (causes, risk factors) of health-related states and events (not just diseases) in specified
populations (patient is community, individuals viewed collectively), and the application of (since
epidemiology is a discipline within public health) this study to the control of health problems.[2]

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