Question

What is epidemiology and why is epidemiological investigation important in the medical field. Please make answer at least 300 words long

Answer 1

Epidemiology is the branch of medicine which deals with the incidence ,distribution and possible control of diseases and other factors relating to health. John Snow is considered the father of epidemiology .He showed that the water supply was frelated to the development of cholera and observed that cholera rates were high amon household who water was more subject to contamination. The main objectives of epidemiology are study the natural course of disease from onset to resolution,determine the extent of disease in a population,identify patterns and trends in disease occurence,identify the causes of disease and evaluate the effectivenesss of measures that prevent and treat disease.Epidemiology studies the population inorder to monitor the health of the population,it identifies the determinants of health and disease in the communities.it investigate and evaluate interventions to prevent disease and maintain health

Epidemiology is the foundation of public health,it is through the epidemiological study ,that we know about causes of disease and health-related events.As the leading cause of diseases and death have moved from infectious to non infectious and conditions,epidemiology has advanced accordingly. Hippocrats ,4th century BC is one of the first people to use ideas that are now part of epidemiology.They examined health and disease in a community by l;ooking at geography,climate,seasons of the year ,food and water consumed and the habits and behviours of people. 60 or more years ago the main causes of death were due to a single pathogen.Epidemiologists had the challenge of isolating a single pathogen.In 1930 and 1940 physician began to realize it was necessary to refine the methods used to evaluate the effectiveness of disease treatment.

Genetic and molecular determinants using epidemiological methods to assess the impact of human genetic variation on disease occurence.Societal determinants studying exposure and disease susceptibility and resistance at diverse levels including the individual ,household,neighbourhood and region. Advances in the following have resulted in a decrease in various infectious diseases.The scope of epidemiology has expanded beyond just the study of communicable or infectious diseases to include accidents,drug abuse,homicide,stroke ,suicide,injuries,mental disorders,nutrition ,environmental poisonings and seat belt use.Epidemiologist is always concerned for the collective health of the people in a community or population under study.Epidemiologist focuses on the source or exposure that caused the illness,the number of persons who have been exposed,the potential for further spread and interventions to prevent additional cases or recurrences.The commonly encountered epidemiological measures are morbidity,which is the number of deaths due to disease in a population,mortality is the number of deaths due to disease in a population,proportion ,risk ,rate and incidence rates.