Epidemiology: A Very Short Introduction

Rodolfo Saracci

Jun 2021 · Tantor Media Inc · Narrated by Paul Hecht

About this audiobook

Epidemiology plays an all-important role in many areas of medicine, from discovering the relationship between tobacco smoking and lung cancer, to documenting the impact of diet, the environment, and exercise on general health, to tracking the origin and spread of new epidemics such as Swine Flu. It is truly a vital field, central to the health of society, but it is often poorly understood, largely due to misrepresentations in the media. In this Very Short Introduction, an internationally recognized authority on epidemiology, Dr. Rodolfo Saracci, provides a wealth of information on this key field, dispelling some of the myths surrounding the study of epidemiology, and explaining what epidemiology is and how vital it is to the discovery, control, and prevention of disease in world populations. Dr. Saracci provides a general explanation of the principles behind clinical trials, and explains the nature of basic statistics concerning disease. He also looks at the ethical and political issues related to obtaining and using information concerning patients, and trials involving placebos.

About the author

Rodolfo Saracci is a former president of the International Epidemiological Association. He is currently senior visiting scientist at the WHO International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and emeritus director of research in epidemiology at the National Research Council in Pisa.