Changing definitions of epidemiology 1978-2017 What is epidemiology? Changing definitions of epidemiology 1978-2017 Epidemiology is a discipline which has evolved with the changes taking place in society and the emergence of new diseases and new discipline related to epidemiology.
Results 102 definitions of epidemiology were retained. They helped to highlight 20 terms and concepts related to epidemiology. Most of them were already used in the definitions used by Lilienfeld. Five terms were present in more than 50% of definitions from the period 1978 to 2017: “population”, “study”, “disease”, “health” and “distribution”.
Five terms were present in more than 50% of definitions from 1978 to 2017: “ population ”, “ study ”, “ disease ”, “ health ” and “ distribution ”. These five terms can summarize epidemiology as being the study of the distribution of disease and health in the population. The term “ study ” may not seem specific enough for epidemiology.
The term “disease” encompasses all unfavourable health changes, including injuries and mental health. focus of an epidemiological study is the population defined in geographical or other terms; for example, a specific group of hospital patients or factory workers could be the unit of study.