APPLIED EPIDEMIOLOGY - HISTORY AND FUTURE

Abstract

Epidemiology is both a science and a fundamental method of public health. This is the science that seeks to link health or disease to various factors affecting the health of human populations. Although epidemiology as a discipline develops after World War II, epidemiological thinking can be traced by Hippocrates through John Graunt, William Farr, John Snow to the present day. Epidemiology's roots are nearly 2500 years old. Hippocrates attempted to explain disease occurrence from a rational rather than a supernatural viewpoint. In his essay entitled “On Airs, Waters, and Places,” Hippocrates suggested that environmental and host factors such as behaviours might influence the development of disease.Another early contributor to epidemiology was John Graunt, a London haberdasher and councilman who published a landmark analysis of mortality data in 1662. This publication was the first to quantify patterns of birth, death, and disease occurrence, noting disparities between males and females, high infant mortality, urban/rural differences, and seasonal variations. In the mid-1800s, an anaesthesiologist John Snow was conducting a series of investigations in London that warrant his being considered the “father of field epidemiology.” Twenty years before the development of the microscope, Snow conducted studies of cholera outbreaks both to discover the cause of disease and to prevent its recurrence.Epidemiology is a philosophy and methodology that can be applied to study and solve a very wide range of health problems. The Art of Epidemiology consists of not only to use different study designs and statistical methods, but when and how to apply the various epidemiological strategies most effectively to respond to specific health issues axes and get the information we need. It is a key element in the formulation of effective public health initiatives to prevent disease and promote community health. Epidemiology studies the factors affecting health and disease of the population and thus serves as a basis for a logical approach to protecting and strengthening public health. The scope of epidemiology has been steadily expanding over recent decades as epidemiologists demonstrate new applications and variations traditional design and training methods. We can expect that the scope of epidemiology will be further expanded in the future as more and more epidemiologists develop innovative strategies and techniques.