Exam 1 Flashcards

(181 cards)

1
Q

Epidemiology

A

the diagnostic discipline of public health

study of the distribution and the determinants (risk factors) of disease and mortality in the population

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Quantifying a Disease

A

1) Define the disease

2) Measure disease frequency:
a) count the number of individuals affected (numerator)
b) determine the size of the population from which the cases arose (denominator)
c) account for the passage of time

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Basic types of incidence rates

A

1) Cumulative Incidence

2) Incidence rate (aka incidence density: person-time incidence rate)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

Incidence

A

the number of new cases per unit population, during a stated period of time

the rate of development of a disease in a population over a specified period of time

contains the following elements:

a) numerator - number of new cases
b) denominator - population at risk
c) rate base or multiplier
d) time - period during which cases accrued

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

Population at risk (PAR)

A

the denominator for incidence rates

are AT RISK of contracting the disease

are DISEASE-FREE at the start of the specified time period

exclude individuals NOT AT RISK in the population from the denominator - important with lifelong diseases and infectious diseases that confer immunity

among large populations (ex. US incidence rates), denominator is based on average population

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Rate Base

A

also known as multiplier

rate base - per 100, 1000, or 100000 (to power of 10)

purpose: the reported rate is expressed as a number equal to or greater than 1

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Calculate cumulative incidence of colon cancer among this study population:

60 cases of colon cancer were reported in 5 year study of 311 study subjects, colon cancer-free at start of study

A

Cumulative incidence rate = number of new cases / population at risk

60/311 = 0.1929
19.3 cases per 100 over 5 years

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

Calculate cumulative incidence rate for ovarian cancer:

# of new cases = 1085
population at risk = 37105
time period = 8 years
A

incidence rate = 1085 / 37105 = 0.02924

  1. 02924 / 8 = 0.003655
  2. 003655 x 100,000 = 365.5 cases per 100,000 women per year
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Cumulative incidence rate

A

represents a population’s average risk of developing that disease during the time/period of observation

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Incidence Rate

A

also known as incidence density

what to do when members of a population or study group are under observation for different lengths of time

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Incidence density equation

A

Incidence density = # of new cases during the time period / total person-time of observation

If measured in years:
Incidence density = # of new cases during the time period / total person-years of observation

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What is the incidence rate of colon cancer among this study population per 100 person-years?

60 cases of colon cancer were reported in 5 year study of 311 study subjects. 10 subjects developed colon cancer and 40 dropped out of study after one year, 35 new cases were reported at end of year two; no cases, but 4 subjects dropped out at end of year three, 10 new cases and 12 subjects dropped out at end of year four, and 5 new cases were reported at end of year 5.

A

Incidence rate of colon cancer is: 60 cases per 1220 person years

Incidence per 100 person-years: (60/1220) x 100 = 4.9 cases per 100 person years

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Advantages of incidence rate over cumulative incidence

A

advantages in follow up studies:

1) allow for subject losses due to withdrawals, deaths or other reasons
2) accommodates subjects entering a study at different times

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

Applications of incidence data

A

1) helps in research on the etiology/causality of disease

2) estimates the risk of developing a disease

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

Attack Rate (AR)

A

a cumulative incidence rate used when the nature of the disease or condition is such that a population is observed for a short period of time

alternative form of incidence rate

used for diseases observed in a population for a short time period

with acute infectious disease outbreaks, the population-at-risk increases greatly over a short period of time

ex) salmonella gastroenteritis outbreak

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

Prevalence

A

the number of cases (new and existing) of a disease or health condition in a population at or during some designated time

provides an indication of the extent of a health problem BUT is NOT a measure of risk

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

Point prevalence equation

A

Point prevalence = number of cases / total number in the group at point in time

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

Period prevalence

A

Period prevalence = number of cases of disease during a time period

average population at mid-point

cases are counted even if they die, migrate, or recur

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

Uses of prevalence

A

1) describing the burden of a health problem in a population

2) determining allocation of health resources such as facilities and personnel

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

Interrelationship between Prevalence and Incidence

A

the prevalence (P) of a disease is proportional to the incidence rate (I) times the duration (D) of a disease

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

Incidence and Prevalence

A

if duration of disease is short and incidence is high, prevalence becomes similar to incidence

short duration: cases recover rapidly or are fatal (ex. common cold, flu, ebola)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

An epidemiologist conducts a survey of Sargentitis Disease in a population.

The prevalence of Sargentitis
among women is 40 per 1,000 and
among men is 20 per 1,000.

Assuming the data is age-adjusted,
is it correct to assume that women have twice the risk of Sargentitis compared with men?

A

No, there could be a lot more women in the total population compared to men

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

Changing Patterns of Mortality

A

until the 20th century the major causes of death in all parts of the world combined were infectious diseases

in the 20th century, control of infectious diseases is paralleled by the emergence of chronic diseases as major causes of mortality

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

Characteristics of Infectious Diseases

A

relatively short latency period from exposure to disease

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Characteristics of Chronic Diseases
long latency period, 10-20+ years the length of latency period impacts public health approaches to reduce disease rates within a population health care and public health care systems need to adapt
26
Risk factor
a characteristic or agent whose presence increases the probability of occurrence of a disease
27
Social determinants of a health fact file
fact file: social determinants of health poverty, social exclusion, poor housing, and poor health systems are among the main social causes of ill health
28
Objectives of Epidemiology
1) the extent of disease in a population 2) identify patterns and trends in disease 3) identify causes/risk factors of disease 4) evaluate effectiveness of prevention and treatment activities
29
Fixed population
a population whose membership is permanent ex) population of Hiroshima, Japan during atomic bomb explosion in WWII
30
Dynamic or open population
membership of this population is defined by a changeable state or condition ex) resident of Boston
31
Steady state
the number entering a population is equal to the number leaving ex) BU student population
32
Count
simplest and most frequently performed quantitative measure refers to the number of cases of a disease or other health phenomenon for rare diseases or symptom presentations (cases of Ebola virus) ex) 5000 cases of influenza in Suffolk county in Jan. 2001 ex) 3000 traffic fatalities in Springfield, IL in 2001
33
Proportion
for a count to be descriptive of a group, it must be seen relative to the size of the group a fraction where the numerator is part/subset of the denominator ex) male births/all births
34
Ratio
a relative relationship like a proportion or a fraction numerator and denominator are mutually exclusive/not related - different from a proportion
35
Rate
a fraction that consists of a numerator and a denominator and in which time forms part of the denominator the numerator is a subset/part of the denominator involved a measure of time the numerator is the frequency of disease the denominator is a unit size of population, over a specified time period
36
Rate purpose
Contain the following 3 elements: 1) disease/health event frequency 2) unit size of population 3) time period
37
Crude rates
summary rates based on the actual number of events in a population over a given time period
38
Crude birth rates
number of live births within a given period / population size at the middle of that period
39
General fertility rate
of live births within a year / # of women aged 15-44 years during the midpoint of the year
40
Infant mortality rate
number of infant deaths among infants aged 0-365 days during the year / number of live births during the year
41
Neonatal period
neonatal period: birth - 28 days of age
42
Neonatal mortality rate
number of infant deaths under 28 days of age / number of live births reflects consequences of perinatal events, primarily: - congenital malformations - prematurity (birth before gestation week 37) - low birth weight (birth weight less than 2,500 g)
43
Postneonatal mortality rate
reflects environmental events, control of infectious diseases, and improvement in nutrition
44
Fetal death rate
used to estimate the risk of death of the fetus associated with the stages of gestation number of fetal deaths after 20 weeks or more gestation / number of live births and number of fetals deaths after 20 weeks or more gestation
45
Late fetal death rate
number of fetal deaths after 28 weeks or more gestation / number of live births and number of fetal deaths after 28 weeks or more gestation
46
Perinatal mortality rate
reflects environmental events that occur during pregnancy and after birth; it combines mortality during the prenatal and postnatal periods
47
Maternal mortality rate
reflects health care access and socioeconomic factors; it includes maternal deaths resulting from causes associated with pregnancy and puerperium (during and after childbirth) (number of maternal deaths assigned to causes related to childbirth / number of live births (during a year)) x 100,000 per 100,000 live births, including multiple births
48
Crude rates
use crude rates with caution when comparing disease frequencies between populations observed differences in crude rates may be the result of systematic factors within the population rather than true variation in rates
49
Different types of rates
1) crude rates 2) specific rates 3) adjusted rates
50
Who started natural experiments
John Snow (mid 19th century) cholera outbreak
51
John Snow's natural experiment
linked the cholera epidemic to contaminated water supplies used a spot map of cases and tabulation of fatal attacks and deaths observe and record data (quantitative approach) two different water companies supplied water from the Thames River to houses in the same area The Lambeth Company moved its source of water to a less polluted portion of the river during the next cholera outbreak those served by the Lambeth Company had fewer cases of cholera than in prior outbreaks
52
Natural experiment
the epidemiologist does not manipulate a risk factor but rather observes the changes in an outcome as the result of natural occurring situation
53
City A: population 500,000 reports 1,000 new cases of prostate cancer in 1-year period City B: population 50,000 reports 750 new cases of prostate cancer in a 3-year period. Which city has the higher rate of new prostate cancer cases?
1000/500000 = 0.002 0.002 x 1000 = 2 750/50000 = 0.015 0. 015 / 3 = 0.005 0. 005 x 1000 = 5 City B has a higher rate of new prostate cancer cases
54
Limitations of Crude Rates
observed differences may be due to systematic differences (age, gender, race) between the populations rather than true variations in rates
55
How to correct crude rates
specific rates and adjusted rates
56
Specific rates
refer to a particular subgroup of the population defined in terms of race, age, sex, or single cause of death or illness may also examine cause specific morbidity and mortality rates within a subgroup of the population ex) mortality from HIV among 25-34 year olds
57
Age specific death rate
(number of deaths in age group / number of persons in age group) x 100,000
58
Cause-specific rate
(mortality (or frequency of a given disease) / population size at midpoint of time period) x 100,000
59
Cause Specific Mortality
the number of deaths from a disease or cause divided by the population size at the mid-point of the time period shows the risk of mortality from a specific cause within that population IS a measure of risk of dying of a specific disease/cause
60
Proportional mortality ratio
(mortality due to a specific cause during a time period / mortality due to all causes during the same time period) x 100 the number of deaths within a population due to a specific disease or cause divided by the total number of deaths in the same population during a specific time period indicates relative importance of a specific cause of death; NOT a measure of the risk of dying of a particular cause
61
Country A and B have identical populations (1 million) and cause specific mortality for cardiovascular disease (CVD): 5 per 100,000. Risk of dying from cardiovascular disease is the same for both countries Yet PMR from CVD is: 16.6% in Country A 50% in Country B A: overall mortality rate = 30 per 100,000 B: overall mortality rate = 10 per 100,000 How can this be?
Need to know each country’s mortality rate to calculate total number deaths in each community: A: overall mortality rate = 30 per 100,000 B: overall mortality rate = 10 per 100,000 Need to know total deaths for each country to calculate each country’s PMR A: 30/100,000 X 1,000,000 (total population) total deaths = 300 B: 10/100,000 X 1,000,000 (total population) total deaths = 100 Cause specific mortality for cardiovascular disease is 5 per 100,000. (i.e. 50 per 1,000,000, total number of deaths from CVD in each country. A: PMR = 50/300 = .166 X 100 = 16.6% B: PMR = 50/100 = .5 X 100 = 50%
62
Uses of PMR
determine priorities in health care planning within a population (administrator) indicate an area for further study (epidemiologist)
63
Adjusted rates
rates that have been modified statistically to remove the effect of differences in population composition, such as differences in age, sex, or income across various populations to allow comparisons
64
Direct Method for Age Adjustment
may be used if age-specific death rates in a population to be standardized are known and if a suitable standard population is available
65
Direct Standardized Mortality Ratio (DSMR)
(age adjusted mortality rate of test communiity / crude mortality rate of standard pop) x 100 ex) (17.0/12.5) x 100 = 136 "the mortality experience of Community C was thirty six percent (36%) higher than that of Community A)
66
When to age adjust
1) age must be related to mortality (or morbidity) | 2) age distribution of the 2 populations being studied must be different
67
Standardization for mortality rates may also be appropriate for other factors (sex, ethnic group) ... IF both conditions apply
1) sex is related to mortality | 2) sex distribution of both populations being studied is known and differs
68
Why should we collect population data?
Estimating parameters of: - health - morbidity - mortality
69
Census data purpose
provides information on the general, social, and economic characteristics of the US population administered every 10 years attempts to account for every person and his or her residence characterizes population according to sex, age, family relationships, and other demographic variables
70
Vital statistics
births, deaths, fetal deaths, marriages, divorces
71
Statistics derived from the vital registration system
mortality statistics birth statistics: certificates of birth and fetal deaths
72
Limitations of mortality data
overall death certificates are accurate BUT stigma associated with certain diseases may lead to inaccurate reporting (underreporting) Where errors occur: errorrs in coding lack of standardization of diagnostic criteria changes in coding
73
Premature mortality rate
deaths before age 75 rates are per 100000 population
74
Rationale
focusing on deaths to persons less than 75 years - more preventable deaths
75
Summary health statistic
excellent measure to reflect the health status of a population
76
Birth certificate information
includes information that is relevant to the health of the neonate, such as congenital malformations, birth weight, and length of gestation sources of unreliability: - mothers' recall of events during pregnancy may be inaccurate
77
How many notifiable diseases are there in the US?
more than 60 notifiable diseases in US
78
Limitations of reportable disease statistics
possible incompletness of population coverage failure of MD or other provider to fill out required forms unwillingness to report cases that carry a social stigma
79
Registry
a centralized database for collection of data about a disease coding algorithms are used to maintain patient confidentiality applications: - patient tracking - identification of trends in rates of disease
80
Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program
- conducted by National Cancer Institute (NCI) - collects cancer data from different cancer registries across the US provides information about trends in cancer incidence, mortality, and survival by geographic and demographic characteristics
81
General Population Surveys
collect data on the health status of a population group obtain more comprehensive information than would be available from routinely collected data ex) national health survey
82
Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)
telephone health survey system, tracking health conditions and risk behaviors in the US since 1984 issues such as asthma, health care access, alcohol use, obesity, cancer screening, nutrition and physical activity, tobacco use
83
National Health Survey
authorized under the National Health Survey Act of 1956 to obtain information about the health of the US population conducted by the NCHS; consists of three programs
84
Household Interview Survey (HIS)
general household health survey of the US civilian noninstitutionalized population studies a comprehensive range of conditions such as diseases, injuries, disabilities, and impairments
85
Health Examination Survey (HES)
provides direct information about morbidity through examinations, measurements, and clinical tests identifies conditions previously unreported or undiagnosed provides information not previously available for a defined population
86
Screening Surveys
conducted on an ad-hoc basis to identify individuals who may have infectious or chronic diseases ex) breast cancer screenings, health fairs clientele are highly selected individuals who participate are concerned about the particular health issue not representative of general population
87
Insurance Data information
social security - provides data on disability benefits and Medicare health insurance - provides data on those who receive care through a prepaid medical program life insurance - provides information on causes of mortality; also provides results of physical examinations
88
Limitations of insurance data
data may not be representative of entire population
89
Hospital data
consists of both inpatient and outpatient data deficiencies of data: - not representative of any specific population - different information collected on each patient (improving - standardized) - settings may differ according to social class of patients
90
Data from Physicians' Practices
limited application due to: - confidentiality of patient data - highly selected group of patients - lack of standardization of information collected useful for: - verification of self-reports
91
Absenteeism Data
records of absenteeism from work or school possible deficiencies: - data omit people who neither work nor attend school - not all people who are ill take time off - those absent are not necessarily ill - useful for the study of rapidly spreading conditions - flu epidemic
92
Criteria for the quality and utility of epidemiologic data
1) nature of the data 2) availability of the data 3) completeness of population coverage 4) value and limitations
93
Representativness (external validity)
generalizability of findings to the population from which the data have been taken
94
Thoroughness
the extent to which all cases of a health phenomenon have been identified
95
HIPAA Privacy Rule
protects all "individually identifiable health information" including demographic data that relates to: Past, present, or future physical or mental condition provision of health care to the individual past, present, or future payment for provision of health care to the individual
96
Data Interpretation
Consider when interpreting data: 1) population, about which information was obtained 2) calendar (time) period covered 3) level of missing or inaccurate data
97
Youth Surveillance Data in Massachusetts
Gambling Sports-related traumatic brain injury tobacco and marijuana
98
Massachusetts Mortality Data
overall mortality rates and life expectancy causes of death opioid-related deaths premature mortality rate
99
Youth Survey Data
collect demographics, health behaviors, and risk factors important data source for prevention programs at the Department of Public Health conducted odd years
100
Massachusetts currently conducts:
Youth Health Survey (YHS) Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) - CDC-based survey, most questions comparable with US and other states
101
YHS (Youth Health survey) and YRBS (Youth Risk Behavior Survey) data limitations
- self reported - cross sectional: should not be used to determine causation - only a sample of MA public schools - does not include students in: private schools, state custody, other educational settings - underrepresent students who: have severe limitations or disabilities, are often absent from school subjected to biases: sampling, non-sampling, non-response
102
Youth Surveillance Data
provides a picture of current health and risk behaviors of youth able to determine areas that need improvement and discover emerging issues data is a key tool for programs to tailor interventions and focus preventive efforts over time, data shows advancements made by programmatic efforts
103
APC (Annual Percent Change)
rates are assumed to change at a constant percentage of the rate of the previous year
104
Is Pain a part of the vital signs
Yes, started in 1995 | related to opioid crisis
105
Purdue role in opioid crisis
generated $31 billion in revenue from OxyContin for Purdue did not stop marketing OxyContin to doctors until 2018
106
Opioid crisis emerged in 3 waves
initially a crisis of prescription opiods heroin becomes more of a factor explosion of synthetic opioids
107
Opioid Epidemic meets COVID-19
drug overdoses spiked 18% in the US from mid-March through mid-May more than 40 states have reported increases in opioid-related mortality isolation, social distancing, job loss, delayed elective surgeries
108
Health Disparities
are preventable differences in the burden of disease, injury, violence, or opportunities to achieve optimal health that are experienced by socially-disadvantaged populations are the result of upstream factors embedded in social institutions and practices - such as racism, classism, sexism, and socioeconomic inequalities
109
Health disparity factors
- poverty - environmental threats - inadequate access to health care - individual and behavioral factors - educational inequalities - race or ethnicity, sex, sexual identity, age, disability, socioeconomic status, geographic location
110
Medical system bias
non-white patients are less likely to receive pain treatment and be prescribed opioids than white patients
111
Descriptive Epidemiology
distribution of disease Characterize health outcome by person, place, time
112
2 Main uses of Descriptive Epidemiology
1) generate hypotheses about causal relationships - a tentative explanation for an association between pattern of disease in the population and a risk factor or cause ex) higher rates of obesity and diabetes in southern US states 2) public health planning and evaluation
113
Biologic clock phenomenon
waning of the immune system may result in increased susceptibility to disease, or aging may trigger appearance of conditions believed to have genetic basis
114
Latency period
age effects on mortality may reflect the long latency period between environmental exposures and subsequent development of disease
115
Sex Differences
all cause and age specific mortality rates higher for men than for women mortality rate higher for men than for women death rates for both sexes are declining
116
Female Paradox
indicates female age-standardized morbidity rates for many acute and chronic conditions are higher than rates for males... even though mortality is higher for males
117
Marital status
married people have lower rates of morbidity and mortality Marriage may operate as: protective - may provide an environment conducive to health selective - people who marry may be healthier to begin with
118
African American Statistics
highest rate of mortality of all groups studied in the US higher blood pressure levels age-adjusted death rate for African Americans was 1.3 times rate for whites in 2003 differences in life expectancy
119
American Indian Statistics
infectious disease is the 10th leading cause of death death rate is 6.6 times that for all races in US
120
Asian Statistics
Japanese demonstrated lower mortality rates lower rates of congenital heart disease and cancer low CHD rates attributed to low-fat diet and institutionalized stress-reducing strategies some Asian groups have high smoking rates
121
Acculturation
defined as modifiations that individuals or groups undergo when they come in contact with another country provide evidence of the influence of environmental and behavioral factors on chronic disease
122
Nativity
place of origin of the individual
123
Healthy Migrant Effect
observation that healthier, younger persons usually form the majority of migrants
124
Socioeconomic Status
low social class is related to excess mortality, morbidity, and disability rates factors include: - poor housing - crowded conditions - racial disadvantage - low income - poor education - unemployment
125
Measurement of social class
prestige of occupation or social position educational attainment income combined indices of two or more of the above variables
126
Mental Illness/SES
association of socioeconomic status and mental illness (Hollingshead and Redlich)
127
Hollingshead and Redlich Findings
Strong inverse association between social class and likelihood of being a patient with mental illness under treatment as social class increased, severity of mental illness decreased type of treatment varied by social class
128
Social causation explanation
conditions associated with lower social class produce mental illness
129
Downward drift hypothesis
persons with severe mental disorders move to impoverished areas
130
Other correlates of Low Social Class
higher rate of infectious disease higher infant mortality rate and overall mortality rates lower life expectancy larger proportion of cancers with poor prognosis
131
Secular Time Trends
refer to gradual changes in the frequency of a disease over long time periods ex) decline of heart disease mortality in the US
132
Clustering
refers to an unusual aggregation of health events grouped together in space and time
133
Examples of temporal clustering
post-vaccination reactions, postpartum depression
134
Examples of spatial clustering
concentration of disease in a specific geographic area
135
Time (pattern)
temporal patterns in disease occurence may lead to improved understanding of disease causation and recognition of emerging epidemics
136
Epidemic
unusually high level of disease occurrence in a population in the light of past experience ex) influenza, HIV
137
Pandemic
worldwide epidemic
138
Social Progress Index
basic human needs, foundations of wellness, opportunity a way to measure wellbeing of a country better than GDP
139
Ways to measure disease outbreaks
attack rate secondary attack rate case fatality rate
140
Attack rate equation
(sick / population at risk) x 100 (during a time period)
141
Secondary attack rate equation
(total case - initial cases / total pop at risk - initial cases) x 100
142
Index case
case that first comes to the attention of public health authorities
143
Coprimaries
cases related to index case so closely in time that they are considered to belong to the same generation of cases
144
Initial cases
index case(s) + coprimaries
145
Secondary attack rate
an index of the spread of disease within a family, household, dwelling unit, dormitory or similar circumscribed group 1) a measure of contagiousness 2) used to evaluate control measures 3) very useful measure in infectious disease control
146
Uses for attack rates
commonly used to describe occurence of food borne illness, infectious diseases, acute epidemics
147
Case Fatality Rate (CFR)
the number of deaths caused by the disease among those who have the disease
148
Case Fatality Rate (CFR) equation example
(number of meningitis deaths / number of meningitis cases) x 100
149
Endemic
usual/typical level of disease occurrence in a population
150
the 3 parts of the Epidemiologic Triangle
host, agent, environment
151
Agents (examples)
bacteria, viruses, mycoses (fungal diseases), protozoa, helminths
152
Characteristics of Infectious Disease Agents
1) Infectivity 2) Pathogenicity 3) Virulence 4) Toxigenicity 5) Resistance 6) Antigenicity
153
Infectivity
the capacity of an agent to enter and multiply in susceptible host measured by the attack rates, specifically secondary attack rates high infectivity = when secondary attack rate of a disease is high = measure of contagiousness
154
Pathogenicity
capacity of the agent to cause disease in the infected host measured by the proportion of infected individuals with clinically apparent disease high pathogenecity = low rate of subclinical cases among those infected (ex. measles) low pathogenicity = high rate of subclinical cases among those infected (ex. polio)
155
Virulence
refers to the severity of a disease measured by the proportion of cases that are severe or fatal cases (if fatal, use case fatality rate)
156
Toxigenicity
the capacity of the agent to produce a toxin or poison
157
Resistance
the ability of the agent to survive adverse environmental conditions
158
Antigenicity
the ability of the agent to induce antibody production in the host
159
Host definition
a person (or animal) who permits lodgment of an infectious disease under natural conditions
160
Host Defense Mechanisms
nonspecific (barriers) - skin, tears, mucosal surfaces, saliva, gastric juices specific - immune system
161
Active immunity
microorganism or a modified part of the microorganism invokes an immunologic response by the host when the host makes the antibodies him/herself long-term
162
Passive immunity
short term immunity provided by a preformed antibody, which is delivered to the host when the host receives pre-formed antibodies short-term
163
Natural, active immunity
results from an infection by the agent
164
Artificial, active immunity
results from a vaccine that stimulates antibody production in the host
165
Natural, passive immunity
preformed maternal antibodies pass to the fetus during pregnancy provides short-term immunity in the newborn
166
Artificial, passive immunity
preformed antibodies are given to exposed individuals to prevent disease
167
Environment
the domain external to the host in which the agent may exist, survive, or originate consists of physical, climatologic, biologic, social, and economic components that affect the survival of the agents and serve to bring the agent and host into contact can act as a reservoir that fosters the survival of infectious agents ex) contaminated water supplies or food; soils; vertebrate animals
168
Animal Reservoirs
animals can be reservoirs of infectious agents
169
Zoonoses
infectious diseases that are potentially transmittable to humans by vertebrate animals ex) rabies and the plague
170
Direct transmission
spread of infection through person-to-person contact
171
Portal of entry
locus of access to the human body ex) mouth and digestive system
172
Portal of exit
site where infectious agents leave the body ex) respiratory system, skin lesions
173
Indirect transmission
the spread of infection through an intermediary source ex) vehicles, fomites (inanimate objects laden with disease-causing agents), vectors (living insects or animals involved with transmission of the disease agent)
174
Inapparent/Subclinical infection
no symptoms of infection present important because disease can be transmitted by infected but asymptomatic individuals
175
Herd immunity
group immunity immunity of a population, group, or community against an infectious disease when a large proportion of individuals are immune either through vaccinations or prior infection
176
Infectious disease spread
1) the number of susceptible people | 2) the likelihood that a susceptible person will come in contact with someone who is infected
177
Incubation period
time from invasion of infectious agent to development of signs and/or symptoms of the infectious disease in the host
178
Iceberg concept of infection
active clinical disease accounts for only a small proportion of host infections and exposures to disease agents
179
3 types of data to link illnesses to contaminated foods and solve outbreaks
Epidemiologic Traceback Food and Environmental Testing
180
Isolation
separates sick people with a contagious disease from people who are not sick
181
Quarantine
separates and restricts the movement of people who were exposed to contagious disease, usually through a sick person, to see if they become sick