Epidemiology: Key Data Analysis

Key Data Measurement During module two, we began to gain an understanding of various key data measurements and terms of epidemiology. There are many advantages to using bar, chart, line graph, and pie chart data presentations. The terms ratio, rates, proportions, percentages, prevalence and incidence play a vital role in epidemiology.

Data Presentation There are many advantages of using bar charts, line graphs, and pie charts. Once an epidemiological study is completed and all the data is collected, this data is put into visual presentations. These visual presentations help summarize key aspects of the data. “The bar chart is a type of graph that shows the frequency of cases for categories of a categorical variable” (Chamberlain University, 2018). Bar charts can show trends more clearly than a table would. An example for when to use this chart would be, studying the difference in blood sugar levels among males and females related to the development of diabetes. Line graphs also show trends and changes that occur over time. This type of graph plots points along a number line. Pie charts show the proportion of cases in relation to several categories. A pie chart would be very helpful

Prevalence is the number of people in a sample with disease or trait divided by the number of people in the sample. Prevalence is usually showed as a percentage. For example, the prevalence of Tuberculosis in a nursing home when 20 out of 100 resident tested positive, there would be .2 or 20% prevalence. Incidence is the chance of developing disease amid individual who do not have the disease but risk developing it. (Chamberlain University, 2018) For example a person who is newly diagnosed with HIV is an incident case. Prevalence and incidence are similar but they should not be confused. Prevalence shows how widespread the disease is while incidence reveals information about the risk of contracting the