epidemiology

• • The study of distribution, patterns, causes and risk factors of diseases in a population. It can be used to study both infectious and non-infectious diseases
• • An epidemiological study can:
  • Determine cause of a disease and which populations are affected by the disease
  • Help to develop strategies to control/prevent disease and improve public health
  • Evaluate the effectiveness of strategies in place to treat/control/prevent disease
• • Analysis of data abstracted from epidemiological studies allows identification of patterns and trends in the incidence, prevalence and mortality rates of diseases. This allows identification of diseases that are most prevalent in populations and groups that are most at risk
• • Also assists health authorities and government to make predictions develop and implement strategies aimed at preventing the diseases that are of most concern to improve the overall health of population
• • incidence= number of new cases of disease in a population over a given time period
• • Prevalence= = total number of cases of disease in the population over a given time period
• • Mortality rate= number of deaths caused by a disease in a population over given time period