Epidemiology and Biostatics

Question 1

What is epidemiology?

Answer 1

the study of populations; distribution of disease and/or determinants of health

Question 2

Who is the father of epidemiology?

Answer 2

John Snow

Question 3

What did John Snow do?

Answer 3

kill the mother of dragons

Question 4

Who is John Snow?

Answer 4

1854 doctor tracked cholera outbreak to source at broad street well

Question 5

How many people died from cholera in one week in SoHo?

Answer 5

500

Question 6

Why is epidemiology important to optometric practice?

Answer 6

understand what we might see, how often it occurs, and create an effective approach to treatment

Question 7

What’s Austin and Werner’s definition of epidemiology?

Answer 7

the study of how and why diseases and other conditions are distributed within the population the way they are

Question 8

Define population

Answer 8

small, medium, or large group of people; grouped by any defining characteristic

Question 9

What is descriptive epidemiology?

Answer 9

five Ws, search for clues, formulate hypothesis, no comparison group, results non-generalizable

Question 10

What is analytic epidemiology?

Answer 10

how and why, clues available, test hypothesis, comparison group, perhaps generalizable

Question 11

What three things should you think about with descriptive epidemiology?

Answer 11

time, place, and person

Question 12

What three things should you think about with analytic epidemiology?

Answer 12

host, agent/vector, environment

Question 13

What are pathogen characteristics?

Answer 13

toxicity, virulence, infectivity, susceptibility to antibiotics, ability to survive outside body

Question 14

What are environment characteristics?

Answer 14

climate, physical structures, population density, social structure

Question 15

What are host characteristics?

Answer 15

age, prior experience, susceptibility, co-infection, immune response

Question 16

What are pathogen interventions?

Answer 16

eradicate, genetically modify

Question 17

What are environment interventions?

Answer 17

housing quality, sanitation, water, preventive services

Question 18

What are host intervention?

Answer 18

treat, isolate, immunize, nutrition

Question 19

Again, what is the descriptive triad?

Answer 19

person, place, time

Question 20

Again, what is the analytical triad?

Answer 20

agent, host, environment

Question 21

What are health inequality risk factors/health disparities?

Answer 21

race, gender, age, geographic region

Question 22

What are health inequity risk factors/social determinants of health?

Answer 22

income, educational attainment, access, health behaviors (smoking, obesity, physical activity)

Question 23

Describe a study design

Answer 23

observational study- does it have a comparison group? no descriptive yes analytical

Question 24

What are the three directions of the analytical study?

Answer 24

cohort study, case control study, cross-sectional study

Question 25

Define epidemiology studies:

Answer 25

the scientific method used to investigate, to analyze, and to prevent or control a health problem in a population

Question 26

How do epidemiological studies help evidence-based medicine?

Answer 26

identifying risk factors and in determining optimal diagnostic and treatment approaches

Question 27

What is incidence?

Answer 27

rate of risk- measures only the new cases of a disease occurring in a given time period within a population susceptible to the disease

Question 28

What is prevalence?

Answer 28

proportion- measures of all cases both new and old of a disease that are present at one point in tie

Question 29

What are good words distinguishing incidence and prevalence?

Answer 29

incidence= develop (how fast, risk), prevalence=have (how much, burden)

Question 30

Describe the epidemiologist's bathtub

Answer 30

faucet= incidence, tub= prevalence, evaporation=recovery and draining=death/mortality

Question 31

What term is often used with acute cases of disease?

Answer 31

incidence

Question 32

What term is often used with chronic cases of disease?

Answer 32

prevalence

Question 33

What is the "equation" for sensitivity?

Answer 33

true positives/(true positives + false negatives) aka proportion of people WITH the disease who have a positive test result

Question 34

What is the "equation" for specificity?

Answer 34

true negatives/(true negatives + false positives) aka proportion of people WITHOUT the disease who have a negative test result