Module 1- Epidemology Flashcards
What is Epidemiology?
Epidemiology is the study of how much disease occurs in groups and the of the factors that determine differences in disease occurrence between two groups.
What is N/D?
n= people from the population with the dis-ease. d= population
Why is Epidemiology studies carried out?
determine causes of dis-ease and establish preventative measures and treatments and inequity
Why is Age standardisation carried out?
To eliminate confounding caused by the different age distributions(one population may have more older people and older people tend to die faster.
What makes epidemiology studies different from other science studies
The starting point
Why is time important?
Every person has 1 lifetime with the death rate 100%
What makes crude rates different from standardised rates?
Crude rates take into account whole population while standardised rates take into account age
What is a population?
A group of people who share a common feature
What is GATE and what is PECOT
Gate is the frame that all epidemiological studies can fit into while PECOT represents all the key components.
Can all Epidemiological studies be hanged on the gate frame?
Yes
How many EG groups and CG can compose in one study
There can be several EG but only ONE CG
What is EGO?
Is a measure of disease occurrence. EGO= a/EG
What is CGO?
Measure of disease occurrence. CGO=b/CG
Why are CGO and EGO important?
The entire purpose of Epi studies is to calculate how much dis-ease occurs in a particular group and why they are different
What is a cohort study?
observational study, participates divided into two groups depending their choices. No intervention
Why is cohort studies used rather than RCT?
Unethical cases and unpractical
What are the advantages of Cohort studies?
1) No recall bias 2) One exposure, multiple outcomes can be measured 3)many exposures, multiple outcomes can be measured
What the weaknesses of Cohort studies?
1) Confounding 2) Maintenance error (misclassification) 3) rare diseases not useful 4) Selection bias(findings implications + lost of follow-up) 5) allocation error(especially in diet measurements)
Common design features of cohort study
Observational, followered overtime
What is a RCT study
participants are randomly allocated to either the Exposure group or the comparison group
What are the advantages of RCT?
Less or no confounding
What are the disadvantages of RCT?
1) Maintenance error(people stop intervention if they know it’s bad) 2) Recruitment error(highly motivated volunteers) 3) Expensive(cost per participate) = small studies
What makes a RCT study different to a cohort study?
Allocation process- RCT allocation is random while in cohort you observe what they have been doing
Why are RCT studies not done always
1) Unethical 2)impractical
What impact does small RCT studies have on the CI and R.E
Wide CI= High random error
How can random error be reduced?
Meta-analyse- Narrow CI=Low random error
What is a cross-sectional study?
Allocation and outcome measurements are done at the same time
What are the advantages of cross-sectional studies?
1) no maintenance error
What are the disadvantages of cross-sectional studies?
1) recruitment error 2) Confounding 3) reverse causality 4) measurement error
What is a meta-analysis?
The results of small studies are combined into one
How is allocation bias avoided
Randomisation process-as it makes sure that both groups are as similar as possible
confounding possible when participants are randomly assigned to EG or CG?
Yes- when there is tampering with the randomisation process by the investigator and in small study designs(by chance)