MCB 3020 Exam Study Guide Questions
and Answers
Define epidemiology - Answer-- The study of the origin, cause, 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
T/F: Control measures for microorganisms should be directed toward the part of the
disease cycle that is most susceptible to control - Answer-True
What government agency focuses on national and environmental health, as well as
designs a set of health education activities to improve general health of population? -
Answer-Center 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 that can be used to protect the
population against biological warfare threats
Define the following terms - Answer-- Sporadic disease: occurs occasionally, at irregular
intervals
- Endemic disease: occurs regularly at a low level of frequency and at moderately
regular intervals
- Hyperendemic disease: increases gradually above level of an endemic disease, but
not enough to qualify as an epidemic
- Outbreak: an abrupt, unexpected occurrence of a disease, usually in a limited segment
of the population
- Epidemic: an abrupt increase in frequency of disease above expected number
- Index case: first case in an epidemic
- Pandemic: 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
T/F: Epidemiologists frequently draw on the knowledge from the field of statistics. -
Answer-True
Define and describe the 3 numerical measures of disease frequency - Answer--
Morbidity (incidence) rate: number of new cases of a disease during a particular period,
as a fraction of population size
- Prevalence rate: measures the total number of infected individuals in population at any
given time, as a share of total population size
- Mortality rate: number of deaths from a given disease, as a fraction of overall cases of
that disease
What is an infectious disease? When does it become communicable? - Answer--
Infectious disease: one that results from an infection by microbial agents
- Becomes communicable when it can be transmitted from person to person
Define the following and their differences: common-source epidemics vs propagated
epidemics - Answer-- Common-source epidemics: one that is caused by a single,
common contaminated source
-> characterized by a significant, intermediate increase in number of infected
individuals, and a similarly significant decrease in number of infected individuals
- Propagated epidemics: caused by the introduction of an infected individual into a
susceptible population, where the disease can be propagated to others
-> characterized by a gradual increase in the number of infected individuals, followed by
a gradual decline in the number of infected individuals over time
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 population
**this explains why an unvaccinated individual may not become infected since most of
the population around them have been**
T/F: Immunization of a population has no effect on herd immunity. - Answer-False;
increases the level of immunity
Distinguish difference between antigenic drift and antigenic shift - Answer-- Antigenic
drift: results in minor changes to virus; from natural mutations
and Answers
Define epidemiology - Answer-- The study of the origin, cause, 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
T/F: Control measures for microorganisms should be directed toward the part of the
disease cycle that is most susceptible to control - Answer-True
What government agency focuses on national and environmental health, as well as
designs a set of health education activities to improve general health of population? -
Answer-Center 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 that can be used to protect the
population against biological warfare threats
Define the following terms - Answer-- Sporadic disease: occurs occasionally, at irregular
intervals
- Endemic disease: occurs regularly at a low level of frequency and at moderately
regular intervals
- Hyperendemic disease: increases gradually above level of an endemic disease, but
not enough to qualify as an epidemic
- Outbreak: an abrupt, unexpected occurrence of a disease, usually in a limited segment
of the population
- Epidemic: an abrupt increase in frequency of disease above expected number
- Index case: first case in an epidemic
- Pandemic: 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
T/F: Epidemiologists frequently draw on the knowledge from the field of statistics. -
Answer-True
Define and describe the 3 numerical measures of disease frequency - Answer--
Morbidity (incidence) rate: number of new cases of a disease during a particular period,
as a fraction of population size
- Prevalence rate: measures the total number of infected individuals in population at any
given time, as a share of total population size
- Mortality rate: number of deaths from a given disease, as a fraction of overall cases of
that disease
What is an infectious disease? When does it become communicable? - Answer--
Infectious disease: one that results from an infection by microbial agents
- Becomes communicable when it can be transmitted from person to person
Define the following and their differences: common-source epidemics vs propagated
epidemics - Answer-- Common-source epidemics: one that is caused by a single,
common contaminated source
-> characterized by a significant, intermediate increase in number of infected
individuals, and a similarly significant decrease in number of infected individuals
- Propagated epidemics: caused by the introduction of an infected individual into a
susceptible population, where the disease can be propagated to others
-> characterized by a gradual increase in the number of infected individuals, followed by
a gradual decline in the number of infected individuals over time
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 population
**this explains why an unvaccinated individual may not become infected since most of
the population around them have been**
T/F: Immunization of a population has no effect on herd immunity. - Answer-False;
increases the level of immunity
Distinguish difference between antigenic drift and antigenic shift - Answer-- Antigenic
drift: results in minor changes to virus; from natural mutations
