UF MCB3020 EXAM 4 Bacusmo
Questions and Answers (Graded A)
Define Epidemiology - ANSWER - The study of the origin, causer distribution, and spread of
disease
Who was the first epidemiologist and what were his studies? - ANSWER - John Snow - Studied
series of Cholera outbreaks; discovered the disease came from infected drinking water
True or False: Control measures for microorganisms should be directed toward the part of the
disease cycle that is most susceptible to control. - ANSWER - true
What governmental agency focuses on national and environmental health, as well as designs a
set of health education activities to improve general health of the population? - ANSWER -
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
What is the supranational agency involved in tracking and controlling the spread of disease
worldwide? - ANSWER - World Health Organization (WHO)
What is the U.S. Biological Weapons Defense Initiative? - ANSWER - Based on developing,
producing, and stockpiling specific antibody reagents hat can be used to protect the population
against biological warfare threats.
What is herd immunity? - ANSWER - Explains the resistance of a population to infection and to
the spread of an infectious organism due to high level of immunity of a large percentage of the
population.
***This explains why an unvaccinated individual may not become infected since most of the
population around them have been***
True or False: Immunization of a population has no effect on herd immunity. - ANSWER - False;
increases the level of herd immunity
Distinguish the difference between antigenic drift and antigenic shifts - ANSWER - Antigenic
drift: results in minor changes to virus; From natural mutations
, Antigenic shifts: More drastic changes that result in completely different strains; From
combination of strains
1. Define the following terms:
a.) Sporadic disease: - ANSWER - Occurs occasionally, at irregular intervals
b.) Endemic disease: - ANSWER - Occurs regularly at a low level of frequency and at
moderately regular intervals
c.) Hyperendemic disease: - ANSWER - Increases gradually above the level of an endemic
disease, but not enough to qualify as an epidemic
d.) Outbreak: - ANSWER - An abrupt, unexpected occurrence of a disease, usually in a limited
segment of the population
e.) Epidemic: - ANSWER - An abrupt increase in the frequency of the disease above the
expected number
i.) Index Case: - ANSWER - First case in an epidemic
f.) Pandemic: - ANSWER - An increase in the occurrence of disease within a large population
What does public health surveillance involve? - ANSWER - The proactive evaluation of
emerging infectious agents, human behaviors, lifestyle choices, and genetic backgrounds
True or False: Epidemiologists frequently draw on knowledge from the field of statistics. -
ANSWER - True
Define and describe the three numerical measures of disease frequency. - ANSWER - 1.
Morbidity Rate: the number of new cases of a disease during a particular period, as a fraction of
the population size.
a. # of new cases during specific period/ Total population size
2. Prevalence Rate: measures the total number of infected individuals in the population at any
given time, as a share of the total population size
Questions and Answers (Graded A)
Define Epidemiology - ANSWER - The study of the origin, causer distribution, and spread of
disease
Who was the first epidemiologist and what were his studies? - ANSWER - John Snow - Studied
series of Cholera outbreaks; discovered the disease came from infected drinking water
True or False: Control measures for microorganisms should be directed toward the part of the
disease cycle that is most susceptible to control. - ANSWER - true
What governmental agency focuses on national and environmental health, as well as designs a
set of health education activities to improve general health of the population? - ANSWER -
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
What is the supranational agency involved in tracking and controlling the spread of disease
worldwide? - ANSWER - World Health Organization (WHO)
What is the U.S. Biological Weapons Defense Initiative? - ANSWER - Based on developing,
producing, and stockpiling specific antibody reagents hat can be used to protect the population
against biological warfare threats.
What is herd immunity? - ANSWER - Explains the resistance of a population to infection and to
the spread of an infectious organism due to high level of immunity of a large percentage of the
population.
***This explains why an unvaccinated individual may not become infected since most of the
population around them have been***
True or False: Immunization of a population has no effect on herd immunity. - ANSWER - False;
increases the level of herd immunity
Distinguish the difference between antigenic drift and antigenic shifts - ANSWER - Antigenic
drift: results in minor changes to virus; From natural mutations
, Antigenic shifts: More drastic changes that result in completely different strains; From
combination of strains
1. Define the following terms:
a.) Sporadic disease: - ANSWER - Occurs occasionally, at irregular intervals
b.) Endemic disease: - ANSWER - Occurs regularly at a low level of frequency and at
moderately regular intervals
c.) Hyperendemic disease: - ANSWER - Increases gradually above the level of an endemic
disease, but not enough to qualify as an epidemic
d.) Outbreak: - ANSWER - An abrupt, unexpected occurrence of a disease, usually in a limited
segment of the population
e.) Epidemic: - ANSWER - An abrupt increase in the frequency of the disease above the
expected number
i.) Index Case: - ANSWER - First case in an epidemic
f.) Pandemic: - ANSWER - An increase in the occurrence of disease within a large population
What does public health surveillance involve? - ANSWER - The proactive evaluation of
emerging infectious agents, human behaviors, lifestyle choices, and genetic backgrounds
True or False: Epidemiologists frequently draw on knowledge from the field of statistics. -
ANSWER - True
Define and describe the three numerical measures of disease frequency. - ANSWER - 1.
Morbidity Rate: the number of new cases of a disease during a particular period, as a fraction of
the population size.
a. # of new cases during specific period/ Total population size
2. Prevalence Rate: measures the total number of infected individuals in the population at any
given time, as a share of the total population size
