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What Is Epidemiology?
Epidemiology is the branch of medical science that investigates all the factors that determine the presence or absence of diseases and disorders. Epidemiological research helps us to understand how many people have a disease or disorder, if those numbers are changing, and how the disorder affects our society and our economy.
Tools of Epidemiology
A variety of tools, including mortality rates and incidence and prevalence rates, are used in the field of epidemiology to better understand the characteristics of disease within and across populations. In addition, epidemiologic studies may be classified as descriptive or analytic, depending on whether they are intended to characterize disease or test conclusions drawn from descriptive surveys or laboratory observations. Information from epidemiologic studies frequently is used to plan new health services and to evaluate the overall health status of a given population. In most countries of the world, public-health authorities regularly gather epidemiologic data on specific diseases and mortality rates in their populaces.
