Introduction to Epidemiology and Concepts of Infectious Disease Practice Test

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• What is a case-control study design and when is it most appropriate?
• What refers to an infectious microorganism or pathogen?
• Which measure expresses deaths in the population per unit time?
• In hospital outbreak investigation steps, which is a typical first step?
• What term describes the termination of disease transmission by extermination of the infectious agent, a global concept in which interventions are no longer needed?
• Which method contributes to achieving herd immunity?
• Which statement best describes Johne's disease in the context of immunogenicity?
• What is the term for the ability of a pathogen to alter its surface antigens to evade host recognition?
• As veterinarians, you should be able to assess the situation to identify ____, then develop and implement a plan to reduce the risk of disease.
• What is a cohort study design and when is it most appropriate in infectious disease epidemiology?
• What is the difference between vaccine efficacy and vaccine effectiveness?
• In the chain of infection, which term refers to the person at risk of infection?
• Which item is commonly cited as an environmental determinant affecting health?
• Epidemiologists are primarily concerned with the collective health of which group?
• What is defined as the time from infection to infection of secondary cases?
• Which two people interviewed residents and studied patterns of the cholera outbreak in London in 1845, creating a dot map that showed clusters around the Broad Street Pump?
• Which type of carrier is infectious during the incubation period before symptoms appear?
• Which term refers to the smallest quantity of a pathogen or toxin needed to cause infection in a host?
• The study of distribution, determinants, and dynamics of disease or health events in a population, and the application of this study to the control of health problems is called what?
• The term Agent might also refer to chemical or physical causes of disease or injury.
• What is the time interval between exposure to an infectious agent and the appearance of signs or symptoms?
• Which of the following is NOT a core attribute of data quality in surveillance?
• What is the difference between effect modification (interaction) and confounding?
• What type of vector carries disease physically without being infected itself?
• A disease that is an epidemic over a very large geographic region or worldwide is called
• Which design feature best reduces selection bias in a cohort study?
• Which mechanisms explain how environmental factors influence transmission?
• How do you interpret an odds ratio of 2.0 in a case-control study?
• Which factor is an example of immunity-affecting determinants?
• Which of the following is an example of a host characteristic that affects immunity?
• Bias is systematic error; confounding is an extraneous factor. Which scenario illustrates adjusting for confounding using stratification?
• Which option lists all four factors that can make a carrier important?
• Which statement best captures the implication of pattern presence in health events?
• In a simple SIR model, what do the compartments represent?
• Which virus is an example of being pathogenic but not virulent?
• A term that describes a disease endemic in animals is
• Which statement best distinguishes a mechanical vector from a biological vector?
• What term did Dr. Schwabe coin?
• Which description best differentiates cohort, case-control, and cross-sectional study designs?
• What minimum information is needed for a basic outbreak report?
• Which attribute is commonly included in a line list to describe each case?
• Which epidemiologic method did Snow famously apply to visualize cholera case distribution?
• Which pair correctly defines reservoir and vector?
• A collection of individuals who share at least one common or organizing characteristic is called a what?
• The baseline level of a disease that is usually present in a geographic area is called
• What is the key difference between a reservoir and a source of infection?
• Which option lists all four factors that can make a carrier important?
• Cary also established meat and milk inspection ordinances across every county in which state?
• What is used to separate ill persons who have a communicable disease from those who are healthy?
• What is the difference between latency and virulence?
• Snow tested his hypothesis by making comparisons between what?
• In Alabama, Cary helped establish the first meat inspection system in the United States. Where was it established?
• What is the term for measures of disease severity?
• Which statement distinguishes point prevalence from period prevalence?
• What term refers to the minimum number of particles or amount of toxin needed to cause illness (ID50)?
• What does R0 represent?
• A disease determinant includes direct causes and risk factors such as genetic and environmental factors.
• A group of cases in a specific time and place that are more than expected is called
• Which list contains examples of high immunogenicity viruses?
• An example of an environmental related disease determinant would be which of the following?
• Cross-immunity can influence outbreak dynamics how?
• Incubation period vs infectious period: which statement is correct?
• An exposure is any factor or characteristic that may be associated with an outcome of interest. Which term best fits this definition?
• In epidemiology, what is a case definition?
• If a study fails to reject the null hypothesis, what can be concluded?
• Which statement best defines confounding in epidemiologic studies?
• How do acute and chronic infectious diseases differ?
• Nosocomial infection is?
• Which department focused on Epidemiology & Preventive Medicine was established by Dr Schwabe at UC Davis?
• Which study design is most appropriate to estimate relative risk?
• Which practice most effectively reduces nosocomial transmissions?
• In the chain of infection, the portal through which a pathogen enters a new host is called
• Which statement best describes sentinel surveillance in public health?
• Which of the following is an example of low immunogenicity?
• What is information bias and provide an example in infectious disease epidemiology?
• Which statement describes how PPV and NPV depend on disease prevalence?
• A line list is used to describe and analyze which of the following?
• What term describes a disease transmission pattern where incidence is reduced to zero in a geographic area due to deliberate interventions, with ongoing efforts required?
• Which statement correctly defines sensitivity and specificity?
• Water is the vehicle in waterborne disease, like drinking water contaminated with Cryptosporidium.
• Which statement best describes confounding with a simple example?
• An increase, often sudden, in disease cases above baseline level is called
• How can maternal immunity be transferred to an infant?
• Which of the following is a host-related determinant listed in the material?
• What is the example of antigenic variation in Influenza?
• Which organization did Dr Schwabe direct a parasitic disease program for?
• What term describes a pandemic in animals?
• In the chain of infection, the mode of transmission describes
• Which term describes the place where a pathogen resides and multiplies before spreading?
• What is a line list and how is it used in outbreak investigations?
• Which of the following statements best describes the epidemiologic triad?
• Which study design is best for investigating rare diseases by comparing exposure history of cases and controls?
• Which statement best describes how species can influence disease outcomes?
• Which term describes transmission via inanimate objects and contaminated media? Example: water or food.
• What is the role of generation time in modeling infectious disease spread?
• Which of the following is considered an environmental determinant affecting health?
• What is the proactive approach to maintain the health of animals prior to hazard exposure?
• Which statement best differentiates case fatality rate from mortality rate?
• What is a contaminated, inanimate object that indirectly transmits infectious agent to a host?
• Determinants of disease can be identified through what approach?
• What are the six parts of the chain of infection?
• What is the Kaplan-Meier curve used for in epidemiology?
• An epidemic in animals is called
• What is the model for infectious disease made of the external agent, a susceptible host, and environmental factors?
• Which statement correctly differentiates the incubation period from the latent period?
• What action did John Snow take to stop the cholera outbreak?
• What vector type carries a pathogen which reproduces within the vector?
• Which metric best reflects disease burden in a population at a given time?
• Which component of the epidemiologic triad directly represents the pathogen or causal agent?
• What is the primary objective of the outbreak verification step?
• What facility did Cary establish in Auburn related to hog cholera (Classical Swine Fever)?
• What are the four type of carriers?
• A ____ ____ is necessary but not always sufficient in enabling disease.
• What is the attack rate?
• All disease is multifactorial.
• What term describes the ability of an organism to enter, survive, and multiply within a host, with or without clinical signs?
• In survival analysis, censoring refers to:
• A convalescent carrier is in the recovery phase but can still transmit the agent.
• Which term is most directly associated with the severity of disease outcomes?
• Dr Schwabe directed which program at the World Health Organization?
• In immunosuppressed individuals, such as a calf with BVD, the infective dose required to cause illness is generally smaller.
• A disease that occurs infrequently or rarely is described as
• What term describes a disease outbreak in animals across large geographic areas?
• What is selection bias and how can it be minimized in study design?
• Food is the vehicle in foodborne disease, like food carrying Campylobacter.
• Which of the following is a factor that can affect immunity?
• Which term best describes strong immune activation with protective memory, often durable immunity?
• In transmission dynamics, what does the 'contact rate' parameter primarily affect?
• In epidemiology, what is the effect of a highly sensitive case definition on surveillance?
• All three contribute factors (disease determinants) that may increase or decrease the chance of developing disease.
• Which of the following is an example of vector-borne transmission?
• A fly contaminating food with pathogens from fecal matter and transmitting to a new host is an example of which vector type?
• Which statement best describes rhinovirus in terms of pathogenicity and virulence?
• Which description best characterizes endemic, hyperendemic, hypoendemic, and sporadic disease patterns?
• Which component best describes host-related characteristics that influence disease susceptibility?
• Classical Swine Fever is also known as what?
• Which statements represent the two fundamental assumptions of epidemiology?
• The cholera outbreak investigated by Snow and Whitehead occurred in which city?
• The field is fundamentally oriented toward which aspect of health?
• Who was the first dean of Auburn College of Veterinary Medicine who worked to eradicate the Texas fever tick in Alabama cattle?
• Which of the following is NOT listed as a host-related determinant?
• How many components comprise the epidemiologic triad?
• Which metric reflects the risk of developing disease over a defined time period?
• Which change exemplifies antigenic variation in SARS-CoV-2?
• Which term describes once disease is detected, actions taken to prevent new cases of disease, detect new cases as early as possible, and to limit disease impact (morbidity/mortality)?
• Herd immunity and how it is achieved?
• What term describes termination of disease transmission (reducing incidence to zero) in a specific geographic area due to deliberate efforts; continued intervention is required?
• Immunogenicity influences the following aspects of the host response.
• Which term describes the ability to enter, survive, and multiply within a host?
• What is used to separate well persons who may have been exposed to a communicable disease to see if they become ill?
• What term describes any factor that affects the health or disease susceptibility of a population?
• Which study design is best suited for studying rare diseases?
• All elements in the chain of infection are opportunities to ____ the chain and prevent transmission.
• Which statement about immunogenicity is true?
• Which notable achievement did Dr Schwabe accomplish?
• In the COVID-19 pandemic, which age group died more often?
• What term describes any object that might be contaminated with a pathogen and transmit disease?
• Epidemiology is the science of public health and population health. Which statement is true?
• In the epidemiologic triad, which component is described as the host or person who may become infected?
• Which statement best describes a vehicle in disease transmission?
• Which statement correctly describes the utility of a test with high specificity?
• What does the basic reproduction number R0 imply in a completely susceptible population?
• Which ethical consideration is unique to infectious disease epidemiology?
• Which of the following is NOT a listed environmental determinant?
• Which of the following is NOT one of Hill's criteria for causation?
• What is the purpose of a control group in epidemiologic studies?
• Which biases are most associated with observational epidemiologic studies, with examples?
• What is the time interval between exposure and beginning of infectious period; if shorter than incubation period, individual is infectious before they know they are ill?
• Dr. Calvin Schwabe is associated with which university according to the material?
• If a pathogen can trigger an immune response and create memory, it possesses high what?
• What is a person or animal that harbors a specific infectious agent without discernible clinical disease who serves as a potential source of infection?
• What distinguishes Neyman bias from lead-time bias in epidemiologic studies?
• Why is randomization essential in epidemiologic inference?
• Which factor primarily affects the proportion of cases captured in a study when the disease has a short duration relative to the study period?
• Which statement is true about E. coli O157:H7 in cattle?
• Compared with SARS-CoV-1 or MERS, SARS-CoV-2 is much less virulent.
• Which of the following best describes the scope of epidemiology's focus?
• How does vaccination influence herd immunity and disease transmission dynamics?
• What is a null hypothesis in epidemiologic testing?
• A primary purpose of applying epidemiologic findings is to do what with health problems?
• Which term can refer to coming in contact with a disease-causing factor, such as exposure to a virus?
• Low immunogenicity is often associated with what type of infection?
• In the chain of infection, the portal through which a pathogen leaves the host is called
• What is the host's ability to resist infection by the agent?
• An epidemiologist's job is to detect ____ in health outcomes.
• Dr. Calvin Schwabe is recognized as the father of which field?
• Which statement correctly differentiates Rt from R0?
• Serial interval vs generation time: which statement is correct?
• How do screening tests differ from diagnostic tests in epidemiology?
• Which study design is most appropriate for assessing exposure and outcome at a single point in time?
• In case-control studies, which measure of association is commonly used?
• Which of the following is a host-related disease determinant?
• Snow provided evidence linking a specific water source to cholera by showing an association between drinking from which source and getting cholera?
• Which statement best describes the false positive rate in a screening test with poor specificity?
• A term used for an epidemic that is limited to a geographic area is
• What term describes the ability of an organism to cause disease with clinical signs or symptoms?
• What term describes the interaction of host, agent, and environment in disease determinants?
• If health conditions show patterns and are not random, they are ____ and, if predictable, they are ____.
• Epidemiology focuses on what overarching aim?
• What describes the ability of a pathogen or its antigens to stimulate an immune response?
• Which term describes a person or animal that harbors an infectious agent without discernible disease who can serve as a source of infection?
• Which of the following is NOT a factor affecting immunity?
• A statement about veterinarians’ capabilities: as veterinarians, you should be able to identify when disease is present, then develop and implement a control plan to reduce/eliminate disease and its impacts.
• Which of the following is a host-related disease determinant?
• Which statement best describes the relationship between disease determinants and risk factors?
• Which of the following was a contribution of John Snow that helped develop epidemiologic thinking?
• What is the difference between a relative risk and an odds ratio, and when are each appropriate?
• What is an outbreak investigation, and which standard steps are used?
• Charles Allen Cary contributed to eradicating a specific tick-borne disease affecting cattle in Alabama. Which disease was targeted?
• In zoonotic transmission, which can serve as a reservoir?