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In science, prevalence describes a proportion (typically expressed as a percentage). For example, the prevalence of obesity among American adults in 2001 was estimated by the U. S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) at approximately 20.9%. [5] Prevalence is a term that means being widespread and it is distinct from incidence.
Incidence is usually more useful than prevalence in understanding the disease etiology: for example, if the incidence rate of a disease in a population increases, then there is a risk factor that promotes the incidence. For example, consider a disease that takes a long time to cure and was widespread in 2002 but dissipated in 2003.
In epidemiology, the attack rate is the proportion of an at-risk population that contracts the disease during a specified time interval. [1] It is used in hypothetical predictions and during actual outbreaks of disease.
Epidemiological (and other observational) studies typically highlight associations between exposures and outcomes, rather than causation. While some consider this a limitation of observational research, epidemiological models of causation (e.g. Bradford Hill criteria) [7] contend that an entire body of evidence is needed before determining if an association is truly causal. [8]
Incidence (epidemiology) vs. Prevalence vs. Cumulative incidence; Many medical tests (such as pregnancy tests) have two possible results: positive or negative. However, tests will sometimes yield incorrect results in the form of false positives or false negatives.
This task requires the forward-looking ability of modern risk management approaches that transform health risk factors, incidence, prevalence and mortality statistics (derived from epidemiological analysis) into management metrics that not only guide how a health system responds to current population health issues but also how a health system ...
frequency incidence prevalence: Incidence (rate of newly diagnosed cases of the disease during a specified period of time, e.g., one month or one year); Period prevalence (the actual number people with the disease during a specified period of time); Lifetime prevalence (the proportion of people who have had the disorder at some time in their ...
The number of infections equals the cases identified in the study or observed. An example would be HIV infection during a specific time period in the defined population. The population at risk are the cases appearing in the population during the same time period. An example would be all the people in a city during a specific time period.