In a descriptive study, therefore, the magnitude and distribution of a health problem in a specified population is studied in terms of TIME (when did it occur?), PLACE (where did it occur?) and PERSON (which groups are ...
In the first article in a series on epidemiological research
methods, we describe the origins and uses of epidemiology and
introduce the different types of epidemiological study design.
Follow-up studies (also called prospective or cohort studies)
are used to determine the natural history of disease, to evaluate
the role of risk factors in causation or association, to determine
the prognosis of patients ...
The goal of epidemiology is to improve the health status of
human populations. In our series thus far we have srressed
the need to use the correct design for epidemiological studies,
a sampling scheme that yields ...