Section 5
Epidemiology and Public Health
By Boundless
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/4971/square/snow-cholera-map.jpeg)
Descriptive epidemiology focuses on describing disease distribution by characteristics relating to time, place, and people.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/14751/square/cholera-395.1.jpeg)
Epidemiology draws statistical inferences, mostly about causes of disease in populations based on available samples of it.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/31268/square/640px-snow-cholera-map.jpg)
Experimental epidemiology uses an experimental model to confirm a causal relationship suggested by observational studies.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/14352/square/220px-handcleaning.jpeg)
Promotion of hand washing, breastfeeding, delivery of vaccinations, and distribution of condoms are examples of public health measures.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/14342/raw/flag-of-who.jpg)
Global health is the health of populations in a global context and transcends the perspectives and concerns of individual nations.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/12092/square/coronaviruses-004-lores.jpeg)
An emerging infectious disease is a disease with a rate of incidence that has increased in the past 20 years, and could increase in the near future.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/14715/square/biological-bomblet-cutaway.jpeg)
Biological warfare (BW) is the use of biological toxins or infectious agents with the intent to kill or incapacitate.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/30810/square/em-of-influenza-virus.jpeg)
Technology aids in the identification of new infectious agents, but it also contributes to the emergence of new diseases.
![Thumbnail](../../../../../../figures.boundless-cdn.com/2918/square/em-of-influenza-virus.jpeg)
An epidemic occurs when new cases of a disease, in a given human population, and during a given period, substantially exceed expectations.