A205 Epidemiology and biostatistics Flashcards
Define epidemiology
Study of distribution and determinants of health related states or events
What is the application of epidemiology
Control of disease and other health problems
What are some examples of health related events?
Diseases
Injuries
Birth defects
Maternal and child health
Occupational health
Environmental health
Define distribution
Frequency and pattern of health related events in a population
What is a determinant?
Any factor that brings about a change in health condition or other defined characteristics
What is a disease?
Physiological or psychological dysfunction
What are the main category of diseases?
Communicable
Non-communicable
What are the types of prevention
Primary - prevent disease or injuries before they even occur (healthy individuals)
Secondary - detection and treat
Tertiary prevention- manage complication
What are the steps of investigation of a disease outbreak
- Collect data - pattern of illness related to time and location and link to past outbreak from same germ
- Conduct traceback investigation - common points of contaminations
- Perform food and environmental testing - compare DNA fingerprints of germs found in sick people to those in food or production environments
What is a frequency, and what is the function
Frequency: Number of health events & the relationship of that number to the size of the population
Function: Allow epidemiologist to compare disease occurrence across different population
What is pattern and what is the function
Pattern: Occurrence of health-related events by time, place and person
Function: Occurrence affect the distribution
What is public health
Refers to all organised measures or prevent disease, promote health and prolong life among the population as a whole
What is quantitative data
Expressed in number and graphs and is analysed through statistical methods
What is qualitative data
Expressed in words and analysed through interpretations and categorisations
A negatively skewed graph swings to the?
Right
A positively skewed graph swings to the?
Left
What is probability
Likelihood or chance that something will happen
What is an independent event?
The probability of one event that occurs in NO WAY affects the likelihood of the other event occurring
What is a dependent event
Probability of one event occurring, influences the likelihood of the other event occuring
When do I reject null hypothesis?
When i have a low significant level / small p-value (typically </= 0.05)
When do I fail to reject null hypothesis
When I have a high significant level / large p-value ( >0.05)
What is the formula for proportion?
Number of persons or events with particular characteristics / total number of persons or events of which the number is a subset x 100
What is the formula for prevalence
Existing cases / total population
What is the formula for point prevalence
Number of existing cases on a specific date / number of people in the population on this date
What is the formula for period prevalence
Number of cases that occurred in a given period / number of people in the population during that period
What is the formula for incidence rate
Number of new cases / person at risk
What is the formula for cumulative incidence
Number of disease onset / size of population AT RISK over a defined period
What is the formula for case fatality
Number of fatal cases / total number of cases
What is the formula for cumulative mortality
Number of fatal cases / number of initial at risk
What is the formula for proportional mortality
Deaths from a certain disease / total number of deaths
