Epidemiologists tend to talk in numbers, as most scientists do.
When they compare one group to another in epidemiologic studies, they want to summarize what s going on with a summary measure. They have developed these measures based on the mathematical principles of Statistics. This lecture covers the more fundamental statistical principles that have been adopted by epidemiologists, the more common measures used in describing disease processes identified by epidemiologists, and other mathematical procedures that are being adapted for epidemiologic use.