Basic Epidemiology, Incidence, and Prevalence Exercise

50 points total

(Items 1-5 are 4 points each)

1) Epidemiology is defined as: It is a branch of medical

science that deals with the incidence, distribution, and
control of disease in a population. Epidemiology is the
study and analysis of the patterns, causes, and effects
of health and disease conditions in defined populations. It is
the cornerstone of public health, and shapes policy decisions
and evidence-based practice by identifying risk factors for
disease and targets for preventive healthcare.

2) Surveillance is defined as: Epidemiologic surveillance is

the ongoing systematic collection, recording, analysis,
interpretation, and dissemination of data reflecting the
current health status of a community or population. The
scope of epidemiologic surveillance has evolved from an
initial focus on infectious disease monitoring and
intervention to a more inclusive scope that includes chronic
diseases, injuries, environmental exposures, and social
factors that influence health status. Surveillance is based on
both passive and active data collection processes.
Surveillance is a tool used to detect and monitor epidemics
and public health emergencies.

3) The epitrinity, the three key elements of epidemiology, along with the case
definition, that are the most helpful in discerning the pattern of health events in
human populations are: Distribution, Determination, and Application.

4) A Ratio has number of events in the numerator and total population in the
denominator.

5) A Proportion has number of events in the numerator and total population and a
time period in the denominator.
Read this account carefully and answer questions 6 9 below (2 points each):

A team of Epidemic Intelligence Service officers from the CDC arrives in Rhode Island to assist
the state health department with investigation and control of an outbreak of measles. The team
is asked to include the entire state in the investigation; thus, a confirmed case of measles in
this outbreak is any resident of Rhode Islandwith an illness clinically compatible with
measles who either has a positive laboratory test for measles or is a contact of
someone with a positive test. Individuals with clinically compatible illnesses who did not
have laboratory confirmation and were not contacts were classified as possible cases.

The team members arrive in Rhode Island on March 1st and spent a month investigating. They
found case information as detailed in the following chart:

RI
Case residen Onset Recove Lab Conta
Number t date ry date conf ct
2/19/20
1 yes 2/4/2015 15 x
2/22/20
2 no 2/18/2015 15 x
3/2/201
3 yes 2/18/2015 5 x
3/2/201
4 no 2/18/2015 5 x
3/6/201
5 yes 2/19/2015 5 x
2/27/20
6 no 2/20/2015 15 x
3/6/201
7 yes 2/20/2015 5 x
3/9/201
8 yes 2/20/2015 5 x
3/9/201
9 yes 2/23/2015 5 x
3/10/20
10 yes 2/23/2015 15 x
3/15/20
11 yes 2/23/2015 15 x
3/29/20
12 yes 2/23/2015 15 x
 3/29/20
13 yes 2/24/2015 15 x
3/18/20
14 yes 3/7/2015 15 x
3/19/20
15 yes 3/7/2015 15 x
3/19/20
16 yes 3/7/2015 15 x
3/20/20
17 yes 3/7/2015 15 x
3/29/20
18 yes 3/7/2015 15 x
4/1/201
19 yes 3/7/2015 5 x
3/17/20
20 yes 3/8/2015 15 x
3/22/20
21 yes 3/8/2015 15 x
3/22/20
22 yes 3/9/2015 15 x
3/29/20
23 yes 3/11/2015 15 x
3/29/20
24 yes 3/11/2015 15 X
3/29/20
25 yes 3/16/2015 15 X
3/29/20
26 yes 3/17/2015 15 X
3/29/20
27 yes 3/18/2015 15 X
3/29/20
28 yes 3/21/2015 15 X
3/29/20
29 yes 3/21/2015 15 X
3/29/20
30 yes 3/21/2015 15 x
3/29/20
31 yes 3/21/2015 15 x
4/1/201
32 yes 3/21/2015 5 x
4/2/201
33 yes 3/21/2015 5 x
4/2/201
34 yes 3/21/2015 5 x
4/2/201
35 yes 3/21/2015 5 x
4/2/201
36 yes 3/21/2015 5
37 yes 3/21/2015 x
38 yes 3/21/2015 x
4/3/201
39 yes 3/22/2015 5 x
40 yes 3/23/2015 x
41 yes 3/23/2015 x
 42 yes 3/29/2015 x
43 yes 3/29/2015
44 yes 3/29/2015 x

For the purposes of this exercise, use one million for the Rhode Island state resident population,
and answer the questions using confirmed cases only unless otherwise specified.

Note: remember to express all rates(incidence is a rate) per unit of population

and per unit of time. Prevalence (a ratio) needs only to be expressed per unit
of population.

6) What was the prevalence of measles in Rhode Island as of March 1st?

7) What was the prevalence of measles in Rhode Island as of March 24 th?
8) What was the incidence of measles in Rhode Island for March?
9) What would the incidence be for March if possible cases were also included?

10) Fill in the blanks on the following table using the formula for determining prevalence,
incidence and duration (1point each). Complete all answers in blue.

Prevalence and Incidence of Selected Diseases

Disease Prevalence per Incidence per Years Duration

100,000 100,000 per year
Epilepsy 375.76 30.8 12.2
Multiple Sclerosis 56 5.0 11.2
Parkinsons Disease 157 20 7.85
Motor Neuron Disease 7 1.7 4.12
Central Nervous System 69.03 17.3 3.99
Neoplasms 10 5 2
Use the formula Incidence per year * years duration = Prevalence

11) Observing the data in the table above, what interpretation can you give? What applications
do you find there for the clinical practitioner? For the epidemiologist? (5 points)?

PLEASE ANSWER THIS ON YOUR OWN AS I CAN ONLY HELP WITH THE STATISTICS
PART.
In a city of 100,000 people, there were last year 1000 deaths and 1500 live births (none were
multiple births), of which 1200 infants survived to see their first birthday. Three mothers died
in childbirth.

Using the Week 3 PowerPoint for definitions, calculate:

12) infant mortality ratio (2 points):

13) crude death rate (2 points):

14) crude birth rate (2 points):

15) What possible conclusions could you draw from these rates, about the overall health
status of people in this city (5 points)?