Epidemiology Practice Test

These questions are part of the practice quiz. Start practicing

• Which of the following is an annual use of surveillance information?
• Which option is NOT described as a type of disease surveillance in the material?
• John Graunt is known for what type of publication?
• Which of the following is NOT listed among the successes in epidemiology and public health?
• Which term describes a worldwide epidemic, such as the 1919 influenza pandemic?
• The 1964 US Surgeon General's Advisory Committee on Smoking and Health is best known for which milestone?
• Cross tabulation is best described as?
• Two assumptions inherent in epidemiologic studies include...
• Which factor tends to decrease Negative Predictive Value?
• Which activity best determines the incubation period in an outbreak investigation?
• Which statement about the high-risk approach is true?
• In the 1990s, which development allowed the analysis of large populations using molecular techniques?
• How do case-fatality rate and proportionate mortality differ?
• What term describes a contaminated inanimate object that transmits disease?
• What is the implicit question regarding infant mortality and geographic region?
• Sentinel surveillance is best described as:
• Diagnostic and/or screening tests are designed to separate persons without disease from individuals with disease based on a biological variable. Which example illustrates this?
• Food Borne Disease Outbreak is defined as...
• Which term describes transmission within a population from a source to a vulnerable person, not from parent to child?
• What is a major advantage of physician practice data?
• Which of the following is a function of epidemiology?
• Which adjustment method uses a standard population and known age-specific death rates to derive an expected number of deaths?
• In setting an outbreak case definition, which criterion is essential?
• Which term describes a disease that is in excess of what is normally expected, differing by disease type?
• What does Positive Predictive Value indicate?
• Which best defines disease incidence?
• If you change the cutoff for defining disease, what happens to sensitivity and specificity?
• Which transmission occurs from mother to baby, either genetically or infectious?
• Why is fieldwork often needed during an outbreak?
• Which development in the 1970s facilitated the emergence of new multivariate statistical methods in epidemiology?
• Which data source is least suitable for generalizing to a reference population due to its setting?
• What best describes the preclinical phase of disease?
• What distinguishes cumulative incidence from incidence?
• Which of the following is listed as a major public health success in epidemiology?
• Which statement about 5-year survival is true?
• Secondary prevention involves ...
• Which sequence correctly lists the three stages of modern epidemiology in order?
• Which component of the epidemiologic approach focuses on characterizing the distribution of disease by person, place, and time?
• Which term describes an individual who harbors the organism but is not infected and can transmit it?
• Which statement is a limitation of hospital and clinic records?
• Which statement best reflects the use of case-fatality rate?
• Which term describes habitual presence of disease within an area (examples include malaria in Africa or Lyme disease in the Northeastern USA)?
• Relative survival compares the survival of a group to the survival expected in the group if they did not have the disease.
• What does specificity measure in diagnostic testing?
• Which method calculates survival probability at each event time without grouping into intervals?
• What is a limitation of census data?
• Which statement about screening is true?
• The primary purpose of direct age adjustment is to?
• In a two-by-two framework, which cell includes individuals who do not have the disease but test positive?
• Which term describes exposure that is constant and always present in the environment?
• Why is timing considered important and difficult in outbreak control?
• Which of the following is a common issue in incidence and prevalence measurement?
• Which statement about median survival time is true?
• What best describes the clinical phase of disease?
• Birth certificates are advantageous because they provide complete data including birth rates and birth conditions.
• Which objective describes evaluating both existing and new preventative and therapeutic measures and modes of health care delivery?
• Which statement about data from special clinics/hospitals is accurate?
• What is a hallmark of chronic disease epidemiology since World War II?
• Indirect adjustment does not require knowledge of actual age-specific rates among each age group. Which statement best describes indirect adjustment?
• Lyme disease in the Northeastern United States is an example of which disease pattern?
• What must be assessed when sharing information with the public?
• Which is a disease-related factor in screening?
• What does Negative Predictive Value represent?
• In epidemiology, person-years is used to account for varying follow-up times. Which statement best illustrates this concept?
• Which statement defines a case definition?
• How is case-fatality rate defined?
• Which statement best describes the generalizability of data from special clinics or hospitals?
• Which is a common problem in mortality data?
• What does analytical epidemiology do?
• Which of the following describes a crude rate?
• Who emphasized the use of statistical methods and comparison groups in medicine?
• Count refers to what in epidemiology?
• Which public health milestone occurred in 1964?
• Which of the following is an immediate use of surveillance information?
• Which term describes an infection in which only the genetic message is present in the host, with no viable organisms?
• Who conducted a trial with a comparison group on scurvy?
• A propagated outbreak is characterized by which of the following?
• What is a key advantage of census data?
• Which prevalence measure is highly subject to recall bias?
• How is the case-fatality rate defined?
• Which of the following is an archival use of surveillance information?
• Which statement best describes predictive values in relation to prevalence and test characteristics?
• Which data are typically included in school health programs?
• Which best describes a ratio?
• Which of the following are advantages of school health programs?
• Sensitivity is defined as the proportion of what?
• Which concept is central to the infectious disease epidemiology stage?
• In direct adjustment, the standardized population may be:
• Which of the following is an example of a vehicle in disease transmission?
• Which term describes a stage that is not yet apparent but will progress to disease?
• Defining the disease in epidemiology typically requires what elements?
• An epidemic curve primarily provides information about which aspect of an outbreak?
• What happens to Positive Predictive Value when disease prevalence decreases?
• Which statement describes a limitation of hospital and clinic records related to data access?
• Cumulative or lifetime prevalence refers to:
• What defines a proportion?
• Primary prevention aims to ...
• Which term describes a disease that is consistently present in a population at a relatively stable level over time?
• In which decade did the application of molecular biology techniques to large populations become prominent?
• What does YPLL measure and what are considered productive years?
• Prevalence is defined as the?
• Which statement best describes the interpretation of the kappa statistic?
• Attack rate is best described as what?
• Which statement best describes a difference between Kaplan-Meier and the life-table approach?
• Which of the following is a key objective of control measures during an outbreak?
• If a data source has complete coverage but may undercount some population segments, it is best described as which data source?
• What is meant by the burden of disease in epidemiology?
• Which formula represents the secondary attack rate?
• Which metric specifically measures the proportion of truly diseased individuals who test positive?
• Which statement about life-table methods is false?
• Indirect adjustment compares a study population's rates against a standard population's rates using the study group's base population. Which statement best describes this method?
• Which multiplier is used in expressing the incidence rate per population?
• Which metric is most directly affected by disease prevalence?
• Tertiary prevention focuses on ...
• Which statement best defines a carrier in epidemiology?
• Francis Bacon contributed to which methodological concept?
• Which statement best defines paired percent agreement?
• During an outbreak, when is rapid fieldwork justified?
• What does the term 'index' refer to in outbreak investigations?
• John Snow integrated which three components of epidemiology?
• Which sequence correctly represents the epidemiological approach from observation to experimental epidemiology?
• Surveillance in epidemiology is best described as:
• Which term best describes the early concept of infection transmission in the history of the bacteriology?
• Which statement about life-table assumptions is true?
• In outbreak investigation, which statement best describes how to develop a hypothesis?
• Who established routine mortality surveillance and vital statistics in the England Office of the Registrar General and addressed issues like case definitions and confounding factors?
• Passive surveillance is characterized by:
• Latent infection/disease is defined as which?
• Who is considered the father of epidemiology and linked cholera to water sources?
• What is proportionate mortality?
• Point prevalence is best described as:
• What data are necessary to calculate the incubation period?
• Which statement best describes the concept of expected agreement in reliability studies?
• The 1954 polio vaccine trial is widely recognized for being what?
• Screening is the application of a test to asymptomatic individuals for classification of likelihood of having disease. Which statement is true?
• Which data source offers physical exams and immunization histories for school-age populations with potential for years of data?
• Which statement best describes life tables in survival analysis?
• Which term describes more than one contact with the source?
• What is a limitation of reportable disease statistics?
• Which is a feasibility consideration in screening?
• Which statement best describes the denominator used in calculating an incidence rate?
• Which of the following is a true advantage of disease registries?
• What is a limitation of morbidity data obtained from surveys or insurance records?
• Which term refers to a one-time exposure where all exposed become infected at roughly the same time, producing a single epidemic peak?
• John Graunt is often referred to as the Columbus of Statistics for his work in which area?
• What is the incubation period in infectious disease epidemiology?
• Which statement best contrasts latent infection with persistent infection?
• Clinical infection refers to which of the following?
• Which statement best defines mortality in this context?
• Which statement reflects Hippocrates' view on disease?
• What defines the secondary attack rate?
• Which term is best described as a nonclinical infection?
• Which statement best defines an outbreak (epidemic)?
• Which term best describes multiple cases of disease in a specific area that may not yet form a larger outbreak?
• Indirect adjustment is characterized by which statement?
• What is the incidence rate formula?
• Which data source provides centralized data and information on hospitalized conditions for selecting cases and controls?
• What does overall percent agreement measure in reliability studies?
• Which statement best describes a key advantage of hospital and clinic records (inpatient and outpatient data) as a data source?
• Validity is defined as the ability of a test to accurately indicate which individuals have a disease and which do not. Which statement best captures validity?
• In the teenage smoking example, which component functions as the vector/vehicle?
• According to John Snow, which statement is sometimes unnecessary to prevent disease?
• What best describes the gold standard in disease status assessment?
• Surveillance in epidemiology is defined as ...
• John Graunt published a comparative study of mortality and morbidity in 1662 and was associated with which organization?
• What term refers to a single person who is ill?
• In communicating findings, which group should be informed?
• What is the SEER program?
• What does expected agreement represent in reliability analysis?
• Subclinical infection is best described as which of the following?
• In mortality rate calculations, which denominator is often used?
• Which describes the population-based public health approach?
• Besides health agencies, who might be informed?
• In parallel testing, how is disease defined?
• In survival analysis, when a participant withdraws from a study, how is this usually handled?
• Who used observational data in developing the concept of vaccination?
• Which statement best describes the kappa statistic?
• What term describes several cases of disease in a certain area?
• Why can't two SMRs be directly compared?
• In the sanitary statistics stage, what environmental issue was highlighted?
• Which statement best differentiates point prevalence from period prevalence?
• How is immunity defined in the context of infectious diseases?
• In a single-source outbreak, which pattern is most typical?
• If an epidemic curve shows multiple peaks separated by intervals, this pattern most likely indicates:
• Which statement about rates is correct?
• Why is quantifying the natural history of disease important?
• Persistent (chronic) infection is defined as which?
• In the outbreak investigation steps, which option indicates the step that assesses the hypothesis using data?
• Which statement best describes a limitation of physician practice data?
• Incidence density is another term for which measure?
• Which statement correctly describes a positive declaration in research hypotheses?
• Is it necessary to vaccinate everyone to achieve population immunity?
• A specific mortality rate is defined as which of the following?
• In the analytic process, what is the purpose of the implicit question?
• Epidemiology is primarily defined as the study of the distribution and determinants of health-related states or events in populations and the application of this knowledge to control health problems.
• Active surveillance is characterized by:
• Which term best captures the environmental focus of the sanitary statistics stage?
• Sensitivity is defined as the ability of a test to correctly identify those who have the disease. Which description reflects high sensitivity?
• Birth certificates are used to calculate birth rates, birth conditions, and studies of environmental influences on congenital malformations.
• Which statement is NOT a function of epidemiology?
• 5-year survival is best described as?
• Why is mortality data useful?
• Which issue in epidemiology asks whether the amount of disease varies with the amount of exposure to a factor?
• What is an example of political considerations in outbreak response?
• Period prevalence is defined as:
• Francis Bacon is best known for introducing which methodological approach?
• One objective of epidemiology is to identify the etiology and risk factors associated with a disease.
• What are common sources of mortality data?
• Which field is most closely associated with the germ theory of disease (single agent, specific disease)?
• Which method is used to test a hypothesis in an outbreak investigation?
• Which statement best describes how predictive values relate to prevalence and test characteristics?
• What term defines an insect or living carrier that transmits an infectious agent from an infected individual or its waste to a susceptible individual or its food?
• In the teenage smoking example, which component represents the environment?
• What term describes a disease state characterized by the presence of signs and symptoms indicating active illness?
• What is a limitation of morbidity data obtained from surveys or insurance records?
• The statement, 'The attack rate is the proportion of at-risk individuals who develop disease during a defined period,' is:
• If 20 of 100 at-risk individuals develop illness, what is the attack rate?
• In series testing, which statement is true?
• Which statement best describes herd immunity?
• Which statement about defining the disease in epidemiology is true?
• Which of the following is an example of a vector in disease transmission?
• In the two-by-two table, which category corresponds to disease absent and test negative?
• Period prevalence versus point prevalence formula: which is true?
• Herd immunity refers to what concept?