NR503 Midterm Exam : Population Health, Epidemiology & Statistical Principles
1. The population of a city on February 15, 2005, was 36,600. The city has a passive
surveillance system that collects hospital and private physician reports of influenza cases
everymonth. During the period between January 1 and April 1, 2005, 2,200 new cases of
influenza occurred in the city. Of these cases, 775 persons were ill with influenza according
to surveillance reports on April 1, 2005. The monthly incidence rate of active cases of
influenza forthe 3-month period was:
4 per 1,000 population
17 per 1,000 population
20 per 1,000 population
39 per 1,000 population
130 per 1,000 population
2. What would be the effect on age-specific incidence rates of uterine cancer if womenwith
hysterectomies were excluded from the denominator of incidence calculations assuming that
most women who have had hysterectomies are older than 50 years of age.
The rates in all age groups would remain the same.
Only rates in women older than 50 years of age would tend to decrease.
Rates in women younger than 50 years would increase compared to women older than
50years of age.
Rates would increase in women older than 50 years of age but may decrease in
younger women as they get older.
It cannot be determined whether the rates would increase or decrease.
3. The ability of a single person to remain free of clinical illness following exposure toan
infectious agent is known as:
Hygiene
Vaccination
Herd
immunity
Immunity
Latency
4. Which of the following reasons can explain why a person who did not consume the
infective food item got sick?
They were directly exposed to persons who did eat the infective food item Diarrhea is a
generalsymptom consistent with a number of illnesses
,There may have been an inaccurate recall of which foods were eaten
, All of the above
None of the above
5. Which of the food items (or combination of items) is most likely to be the infectiveitem(s)?
Pizza only
Ice cream only
Neither pizza nor ice cream
Both pizza and ice cream
Cannot be assumed from the data shown
6. The table below describes the number of illnesses and deaths caused by plague in four
communities. The case-fatality rate associated with plague is lowest in which community?
Community A
Community
B
Community
C
Community
D
7. The incidence and prevalence rates of a chronic childhood illness for a specificcommunity are
given below. Based on the data, which of the following interpretations bestdescribes disease
X?
The duration of disease is becoming shorter.
The duration of disease is becoming longer.
The case-fatality rate of this disease is decreasing.
Efforts to prevent new cases of this disease are becoming more successful.The
risk of the disease has decreased over the past 20 years.
8. The following table gives the mean annual age-specific mortality rates from measlesduring
the first 25 years of life in successive 5-year periods. You may assume that the population is
in a steady state (i.e., migrations out are equal to migrations in). Based on the information
above, one may conclude:
Age-specific mortality rates for measles decreased for the period 1910–1914 to 1925–1929
Age-specific mortality rates for measles increased for the period 1910–1914 to 1925–1929
The case-fatality rate decreased for the period 1910–1914 to 1935–1939
Children born in 1910–1914 had the highest rate of death in all periods
1. The population of a city on February 15, 2005, was 36,600. The city has a passive
surveillance system that collects hospital and private physician reports of influenza cases
everymonth. During the period between January 1 and April 1, 2005, 2,200 new cases of
influenza occurred in the city. Of these cases, 775 persons were ill with influenza according
to surveillance reports on April 1, 2005. The monthly incidence rate of active cases of
influenza forthe 3-month period was:
4 per 1,000 population
17 per 1,000 population
20 per 1,000 population
39 per 1,000 population
130 per 1,000 population
2. What would be the effect on age-specific incidence rates of uterine cancer if womenwith
hysterectomies were excluded from the denominator of incidence calculations assuming that
most women who have had hysterectomies are older than 50 years of age.
The rates in all age groups would remain the same.
Only rates in women older than 50 years of age would tend to decrease.
Rates in women younger than 50 years would increase compared to women older than
50years of age.
Rates would increase in women older than 50 years of age but may decrease in
younger women as they get older.
It cannot be determined whether the rates would increase or decrease.
3. The ability of a single person to remain free of clinical illness following exposure toan
infectious agent is known as:
Hygiene
Vaccination
Herd
immunity
Immunity
Latency
4. Which of the following reasons can explain why a person who did not consume the
infective food item got sick?
They were directly exposed to persons who did eat the infective food item Diarrhea is a
generalsymptom consistent with a number of illnesses
,There may have been an inaccurate recall of which foods were eaten
, All of the above
None of the above
5. Which of the food items (or combination of items) is most likely to be the infectiveitem(s)?
Pizza only
Ice cream only
Neither pizza nor ice cream
Both pizza and ice cream
Cannot be assumed from the data shown
6. The table below describes the number of illnesses and deaths caused by plague in four
communities. The case-fatality rate associated with plague is lowest in which community?
Community A
Community
B
Community
C
Community
D
7. The incidence and prevalence rates of a chronic childhood illness for a specificcommunity are
given below. Based on the data, which of the following interpretations bestdescribes disease
X?
The duration of disease is becoming shorter.
The duration of disease is becoming longer.
The case-fatality rate of this disease is decreasing.
Efforts to prevent new cases of this disease are becoming more successful.The
risk of the disease has decreased over the past 20 years.
8. The following table gives the mean annual age-specific mortality rates from measlesduring
the first 25 years of life in successive 5-year periods. You may assume that the population is
in a steady state (i.e., migrations out are equal to migrations in). Based on the information
above, one may conclude:
Age-specific mortality rates for measles decreased for the period 1910–1914 to 1925–1929
Age-specific mortality rates for measles increased for the period 1910–1914 to 1925–1929
The case-fatality rate decreased for the period 1910–1914 to 1935–1939
Children born in 1910–1914 had the highest rate of death in all periods
