Terminology Flashcards
What is a cluster?
An aggregation of cases over a particular period closely grouped in time and space, regardless of whether the number is more than the expected number
What is an outbreak?
More cases of a particular disease than expected in a given area or among a specialized group of people over a particular period of time.
What is an epidemic?
a disease where large numbers of people over a wide geographical area are affected
What is a pandemic?
An epidemic occurring over several countries or continents and affecting a large proportion of the population.
What is a surveillance?
The systematic and ongoing collection, analysis, interpretation, and dissemination of health data.
What is a plague?
A serious, potentially life-threatening infectious disease that is usually transmitted to humans by the bites of rodent fleas.
What are the three types of plagues?
bubonic, septicemic, and pneumonic.
What is a vector?
An animal that transmits disease
What is a fomite?
A physical object that serves to transmit an infectious agent from person to person
What is a risk?
The probability that an individual will be affected by, or die from, an illness or injury within a stated time or age span.
What is a zoonosis?
An infectious disease that is transmissible from animals to humans.
What is an incubation period?
Time in between when a person comes into contact with a pathogen and when they first show symptoms or signs of disease.
What is an endemic disease?
a disease that is present at a continuous level throughout a population/geographic area;
What is the incidence?
the number of new instances of disease in a population over a given time period. It is expressed as “X cases/Y population/ Z time”
What is the prevalence?
the number of affected persons in the population at any given point in time. It is expressed as “X cases/Y population”
What is the only difference between the incidence and the prevalence?
the incidence (I) includes time while the prevalence (P) does not
What is the duration?
Time reflects the DURATION of the illness or condition.
