ANTC67H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 2: Clinical Case Definition, Absolute Threshold, Prevalence
Document Summary
The measure of health and disease is important to the practice of epidemiology. Population health status is not fully measured in many parts of the world which creates a major problem for many epidemiologists. Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. Epidemiologists use simple definitions like disease present and disease absent. It is essential the definition be clearly stated and easy to use an measure in a standard manner in a wide variety of circumstances by different people. Case ensures that the same entity in different groups or different individuals is being measured. Since there is no clear distinction between normal and abnormal it is difficult to define what normal is. A specific cut off point for an abnormal value is based on an operational definition and not on any absolute threshold.
