Question

What are key developments in epidemiology from Snow until the present?

Answer 1

The chronological developments in the field of epidemiology from the period of John Snow to till today are as follows:

John Snow(1813-1858):Provides an example of both a descriptive and analytic epidemiologic study.Snow studied epidemic of cholera in 1848.Determined area persons with cholera lived and worked.

Louis Pasture (1822-1895): Identified the causes of rabbies. Investigated how sheep and human contracted the disease called anthrax.Showed that bacteria could cause disease. Discovered the vaccine for anthrax.

Robert Koach (1843-1910):With Pasture,established the germ theory of disease. Proved that microorganisms do exists and are the causes of disease. Showed that anthrax was transmissible and reproduceable in experimental anumals(mice).Idenyified the stage of growth cycle of microorganisms. Demonstrated that the anthrax bacillus is the only orgamiss that causes anthrax in a supportive animal

Developments in 19th and 20th Century:During 1930s and 1940s epidemiologists extended their methods to non infectious diseases. During 1960s and 1970s health workers applied epidemiologic methods to eradicate small pox Worldwide. In 1980 epidemiology was extended to the study of injuries and violence. In 1990s related fields of molecular and genetic Epidemiology took root.