Epidemic Simulation <3 Flashcards
Epidemiology
study of causes, occurrence, transmission, distribution, and prevention of diseases in a population
Occurrence of disease
Common source epidemic & Propagated source epidemic
Common source epidemic
when the source of an outbreak is contaminated water, food, heating or cooling system of a building, and infects many people at one time
Propagated source epidemic
a disease transmitted from person-to-person
Index case (first case reported)
applies to propagated transmission only
Point prevalence
the fraction of the population that has the disease at a point in time
Incidence rate
the fraction of the population that contracts the disease over a specific period of time
Infectious diseases - transmissible (communicable) diseases
caused by entrance, growth, and multiplication of micro-organisms in the body
Infectious diseases include…
some viruses, bacteria, fungi, protozoa, multicellular parasites, and aberrant proteins known as prions
3 types of disease transmission
direct contact, indirect contact via formite or vector, vehicle, and droplet transmission
Direct contact transmission
person-to-person; physical contact like touching, kissing, sexual intercourse
Indirect contact transmission
fomite - inanimate objects like:
-surgical instruments
-respiratory ventilators
-contaminated syringes
vectors - organisms that transmit, but do not cause disease
Classification of vectors:
Mechanical: housefly
Biological: mosquitoes, ticks, fleas, and lice
Vehicle transmission
infectious agent transferred to a person by ways other than physical contact (food, water, or air)
Examples of food-borne diseases
contaminated foods: H. pylori, hepatitis A
improperly cooked foods: parasitic infections
Droplet transmission:
a type of vehicle transmission; air-borne or microbial aerosol
Examples of droplet transmission
small residues that remain after the evaporation of liquid droplets released from an infected host
dust particles that may originate from floor, clothing, bed sheets, or contaminated floors
Most effective way to prevent spread of infectious disease
washing one’s hands
Patterns of infection
systemic (general), primary, secondary, nosocomial, and subclinical
Systemic (general) infections
spread throughout the body via the blood and/or lymph system
Primary infection
an acute infection that causes the disease
Secondary infection
occurs when an opportunistic pathogen is able to infect the host due to its weakened condition
AIDS patients offen suffer…
secondary infections such as Pneumocystitis pneumonia and tuberculosis