Unit 1 Flashcards
Epidemiology
The study of distribution of disease and determinants of disease frequency in populations
Goal of Epidemiology
Is to control health problems and improve health at the population level
Operationally
Counting the causes of morbidity and mortality
Determining variables associated with causes of morbidity and mortality
In operationally why identify factors that are causes?
They are potentially modifiable.
-Guiding and evaluation interventions to improve public health
Basic Assumptions of Epidemiology
1) Death disease and disability do not occur at random
2) There are causal factors that can be identified through the systematic investigations of human populations
3) Identifying these causal factors can lead to preventative intervention
Clinical and Research Concerns: Exposure
Good or bad: Chemical, biological, physical, psychological, educational etc.
Clinical and Research Concerns: Outcome
Good or bad: Disease, cure, improved attitude, longer life, better QOL
We generally know either the exposure or the outcome and_____________
Want to measure the other
Endemic
The usual occurrence of a disease in a given population
Epidemic
A meaningful increase in the occurrence of a disease in a given population
Pandemic
Spread of a disease across a large region or worldwide
Epidemiological Reasoning
1) Suscpicion of an E–> D relationship
2) Hypothesis formation
3) Test E–>D hypothesis
4 Rule out alternative explanations: Chance, bias, confounding
Epidemiology is fundamentally concerned with________
Populations
Measuring distributions of disease in populations and the factors associated with those distributions
Association
An identifiable relation between an exposure and a disease
Methodological question
How do we look for a cause
Ontological question
What is a cause
Ethical Question
How do we decide if there is enough evidence to act on a cause
What is a cause
A cause of a disease is an event condition or characteristic the preceded the disease and without chick the disease WOULD NOT have occurred at all or would not have occurred until some later time.
Criteria for assessing Causality
1) Strength of association
2) Dose-response relationship
3) Temporal Sequence
4) Biological credibility
5) Consistency of findings across studies
Strength of Association
Is there a strong E-D relationship
BUT doesn’t imply that a weak association cant be judged as cause and effect
Dose-Response Relationship
Does risk increase with increase exposure?
Temporal Sequence
E–> D
Does the exposure precede the disease
Biological Credibility
Is there a known biological basis for the relationship
BUT DEPENDS ON CURRENT STATE OF KNOWLEDGE
Consistency of Findings
Do multiple studies report similar findings
Studies can differ by:
Investigator
Methodology
Study population