The study of populations and factors affecting their health.
The study of populations, especially with reference to size and density, fertility, mortality, growth, age distribution, migration and vital statistics, and the interaction of all of these with social and economic conditions.
n. the study of populations on a national, regional, or local basis in terms of age, sex, and other *variables, including patterns of migration and survival. It is used in *public health medicine to help identify health needs and *risk factors. See also biostatistics.
A measure of the frequency of a phenomenon. In epidemiology, demography and vital statistics, a rate is an expression of the frequency with which an event occurs in a defined population. Rates are usually expressed using a standard denominator such as 1000 or 100 000 persons. Rates may also be expressed as percentages. The use of rates rather than raw numbers is essential for comparison of experience between populations at different times or in different places, or among different classes of persons.... rate
n. the application of statistical techniques to studies in biology, especially in the fields of medicine and public health. The term embraces, and is to some extent synonymous with, vital statistics (e.g. *fertility and *mortality rates) and *demography.... biostatistics
Health Encyclopedia