Life Expectancy and Pathogens

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts related to life expectancy, pathogens, and their effects on health.

Life Expectancy

The average period that a person is expected to live, often used as a key indicator of population health.

Pathogens

Infective biological agents (e.g., viruses, bacteria, fungi, parasites) that cause symptoms and diseases in their host.

Mortality

The state of being subject to death; often measured as a death rate per unit of population within a specified period.

Communicability (R_0)

The basic reproduction number (R_0), representing the expected number of individuals that one infected person will infect in a completely susceptible population.

Epidemic

An increased incidence of a disease within a community or region, significantly exceeding the expected number of cases for a certain period.

Pandemic

A widespread global epidemic of a disease, affecting a large number of people across many countries or continents.

Endemic

A disease regularly found among particular people or in a certain area, at a constant level.

Vaccines

Biological preparations, typically made from weakened or killed forms of a microbe, its toxins, or one of its surface proteins, that provide acquired immunity to a particular infectious disease.

Child Mortality

The death of children under the age of five, often used as a sensitive indicator of a country's health and development.

Alleles

Different forms of a gene that exist at a specific chromosome location, contributing to variations in traits or disease susceptibility.

Diabetes

A chronic medical condition characterized by an increase of glucose in the blood due to either insufficient insulin production or the body's inability to effectively use insulin.

COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease)

A progressive lung disease characterized by chronic inflammation of the airways, leading to obstructed airflow from the lungs.

Asymptomatic

Showing or having no symptoms of a disease, even though the infection or condition is present.

Rhinovirus

A common type of virus that causes the common cold, characterized by symptoms like a runny nose, sore throat, and sneezing.

SARS

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, a viral respiratory illness caused by a coronavirus, known for its severe symptoms.

Cirrhosis

A late stage of scarring (fibrosis) of the liver caused by many forms of liver diseases and chronic liver inflammation, leading to impaired liver function.

Influenza

A highly contagious acute viral infection of the respiratory passages (nose, throat, lungs) causing fever, severe aching, cough, and fatigue.

Infectious Disease

Diseases caused by pathogenic microorganisms, such as bacteria, viruses, parasites or fungi, which can be spread, directly or indirectly, from one person to another.

Non-communicable Disease (NCD)

Chronic diseases that are not passed from person to person (e.g., heart disease, cancer, diabetes, COPD), often resulting from a combination of genetic, physiological, environmental, and behavioral factors.

Immunity

The ability of an organism to resist a particular infection or toxin by the action of specific antibodies or sensitized white blood cells.

Malnutrition

A condition that results from eating a diet in which nutrients are either not enough or are too much, leading to health problems.

Health Disparities

Preventable differences in the burden of disease, injury, violence, or opportunities to achieve optimal health that are experienced by socially disadvantaged populations.

What does R_0 > 1 indicate?

If the basic reproduction number (R_0) is greater than 1, it means each infected person transmits the disease to more than one other susceptible person, leading to the infection's spread and potential epidemic.

What does R_0 < 1 indicate?

If the basic reproduction number (R_0) is less than 1, it means each infected person transmits the disease to fewer than one other susceptible person, causing the infection to likely decline and eventually die out.

What does R_0 = 1 indicate?

If the basic reproduction number (R_0) is equal to 1, it means each infected person transmits the disease to exactly one other susceptible person, leading to a stable disease presence in the population.

What does R_0 = 0 indicate?

If the basic reproduction number (R_0) is equal to 0, it means an infected individual infects zero other individuals, implying the disease is not transmissible, the transmission chain is broken, or the disease is eradicated.