All epidemics have the following common characteristics: i) An unexpected number of cases of particular disease occur at a particular point of time affecting large segment of population. ii) Generally confined to a definite population or geographical area and hence geographic patterns provide us important sources of clues about the causes of diseases.
i) An unexpected number of cases of particular disease occur at a particular point of time affecting large segment of population.
ii) Generally confined to a definite population or geographical area and hence geographic patterns provide us important sources of clues about the causes of diseases.
iii) Usually have a common source of infection. For containment of epidemics, it is important to identify the source of infection so that the appropriate measures can be adopted to eliminate the common source of infection in order to prevent further spread of epidemic.
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iv) Epidemics generally tend to follow a pattern and repeat periodically when the conditions are favorable again.
v) The way an epidemic presents itself in the community depends upon the distribution and characteristics of people living in that area, their social pattern, their cultural behavior and the various environmental factors.