Epidemiology is the core science of public health. It is the study of diseases or other health events that answers the questions:
- Who gets the disease?
- When or how often does it occur?
- Which geographic areas are most affected?
- Why is the disease occurring?
epidemiology {ep´ï-de´me-ol´o-je} 1. the study of the relationships of the various factors determining the frequency and distribution of diseases in human communities. 2. the field of medicine concerned with the determination of the specific causes of localized outbreaks of infection, such as hepatitis, of toxic disorders, such as lead poisoning, or any other disease of recognized etiology. -- Dorland’s Medical Dictionary