HealthAugust 17, 2026

epidemiological

ep-ih-DEE-mee-uh-LAJ-ih-kul

Definition

Relating to the branch of medicine that deals with the incidence, distribution, and possible control of diseases within a population.

Etymology

Derived from the Greek 'epidemos' (among the people) and 'logia' (study of). It entered English in the mid-19th century to describe the scientific study of disease patterns in human populations.

In the news

The article uses this term to describe the surveillance teams responsible for tracking the virus's spread. It highlights the difficulty of tracing thousands of contacts to stop 'unrecognised chains of transmission'.

The Ebola crisis is the deadliest in Congo’s history – this expert knows what’s next

Read the full article ↗

The Independent

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