Epidemiological methods are used for disease surveillance to identify which hazards are the most important. Epidemiological studies are also used to identify risk factors which may represent critical control points in the food production system.
What is the importance of epidemiological studies?
Summary. Research into the causes of disease in human populations makes use of epidemiological methods for recognizing avoidable risk factors which may be active prior to the occurrence of malignant tumours.
What is significance of epidemiology?
Epidemiology aims to describe the distribution and magnitude of health and disease problems , identify etiological factors in the pathogenesis of disease, and provide the data essential to the planning, implementation and evaluation of services for the prevention, control and treatment of disease and to the settingupof ...
What are 3 advantages of epidemiological studies?
- Incidence can be directly calculated.
- Direct estimation of the relative risk (RR)
- More than one outcome of the risk factor can be studied.
- Dose response relationship with exposure can be studied.
- Temporal association of the exposure with the outcome can be seen.
What are the 5 main objectives of epidemiology?
In the mid-1980s, five major tasks of epidemiology in public health practice were identified: public health surveillance, field investigation, analytic studies, evaluation, and linkages .
What are the four uses of epidemiology?
For community diagnosis of the presence, nature and distribution of health and disease among the population , and the dimensions of these in incidence, prevalence, and mortality; taking into account that society is changing and health problems are changing. To study the workings of health services.
What are the 3 major types of epidemiologic studies?
Three major types of epidemiologic studies are cohort, case-control, and cross-sectional studies (study designs are discussed in more detail in IOM, 2000). A cohort, or longitudinal, study follows a defined group over time.
Why is it important to know about diseases?
The significance of rare diseases is often not appreciated by people outside of the field. Rare diseases can provide valuable insights into the causes and progression of far more common diseases. The study of these diseases can also lead to the development of life-saving drugs.
What is an example of epidemiology?
The term epidemiology is now widely applied to cover the description and causation of not only epidemic, infectious disease, but of disease in general, including related conditions. Some examples of topics examined through epidemiology include as high blood pressure, mental illness and obesity .
What is the best study design?
| Clinical question Suggested best study design | Clinical Exam prospective, blind comparison to gold standard | Diagnosis prospective, blind comparison to a gold standard | Therapy RCT > cohort > case control > case series | Prevention RCT > cohort study > case control > case series |
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What is the advantage and disadvantage of cohort study?
You may have to follow large numbers of subjects for a long time. They can be very expensive and time consuming. They are not good for rare diseases . They are not good for diseases with a long latency. Differential loss to follow up can introduce bias.
What are the merits and demerits of cohort study?
| Advantages | Can investigate multiple outcomes that may be associated with multiple exposures | Can measure all variables of interest Easy to obtain large sample | Disadvantages | Susceptible to loss to follow-up compared with cross-sectional studies |
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What are the two main goals of epidemiology?
Epidemiology itself is the study of disease in a population. with goals of determining the frequency and distribution of the disease as well as risk factors for the disease .
What are the two goals of epidemiology?
The objectives of epidemiology include the following: to identify the etiology or cause of disease . to determine the extent of disease. to study the progression of disease.
What are the two types of epidemiology?
Epidemiologic studies fall into two categories: experimental and observational .
What is the best epidemiological study design?
Cohort studies are best for studying the natural progression of disease or risk factors for disease; case-control studies are much quicker and less expensive. Cross-sectional studies provide a snapshot of a disease or condition at one time, and we must be cautious in inferring disease progression from them.
