Academic Year 2018/2019

  • Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures
  • Campus: Bologna
  • Corso: Single cycle degree programme (LMCU) in Pharmacy (cod. 9219)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course the student: has acquired knowledge of the determinant factors of health and disease; knows the fundamental means to prevent the main infectious and non-infectious diseases and to promote the wellbeing of the individual and the community; knows the appropriate elements for conducting health education campaigns

Course contents

BASIC HEALTH DEMOGRAPHY.

Measuring the frequency of health events: birth rate, death rate, incidence and prevalence of diseases, lethality rate.

GENERAL EPIDEMIOLOGY OF INFECTIOUS AND PARASITIC DISEASES.

Epidemiology: general aspects. Reservoirs and sources of infection. Routes of entry and elimination of infective agents. Direct and indirect transmission (through inanimate vehicles and vectors) of infectious diseases. Ways in which diseases may appear in the population (sporadic, endemic, epidemic and pandemic). Natural disinfectants.

EPIDEMIOLOGICAL MODEL OF DEGENERATIVE DISEASES.

BASIC GENERAL PREVENTION.

Aims and methods of prevention. Primary prevention, secondary prevention, tertiary prevention.

GENERAL PROPHYLAXIS FOR INFECTIOUS AND PARASITIC DISEASES.

Notification of infectious diseases, making diagnosis; quarantine measures (isolation in hospital or at home, health surveillance).

Disinfection and sterilisation using physical methods (heat, ionised radiation, ultraviolet radiation, plasma gas). Disinfection using chemical methods: acids, alkalines, alcohols, aldehydes (formic and glutaric), halogens (chlorine and iodine), phenolcresolics, oxidants, chlorexidine, quaternary ammonium. Disinfection with chemical media in gaseous state (formic aldehyde, ethylene oxide). Some applications of disinfectants. Antiseptics.

Disinfestation; insecticides (pyretroids, organic chlorurates, phosphoric esters, carbamates); rodenticides.

Vaccine prophylaxis. Constitution, requisites, ways of administering vaccines; precautions and contraindications. Schedule for compulsory vaccines in newborns.

Seroprophylaxis. Immune sera of animals, human immunoglobulins (normal and specific). Chemoprophylaxis.

Principal rules of indirect prophylaxis.

EPIDEMIOLOGY AND PROPHYLAXIS OF INFECTIOUS AND PARASITIC DISEASES.

Infectious diseases transmitted mainly by air (influenza); infectious diseases with oral-fecal transmission (hepatitis A and E); infectious diseases with direct haematic and/or sexual transmission (hepatitis B,C, D); diseases transmitted by vectors (Lyme's disease); zoonosis (tetanus).

Hospital infections.

Oxyuriasis, scabies, pediculosis.

EPIDEMIOLOGY AND PREVENTION OF CERTAIN NON INFECTIOUS DISEASES.

Chronic bronchopneumopathies, ischemic cardiopathies, diabetes, malignant tumours.

FOOD HYGIENE.

Foodborne diseases: Clostridium botulinum, salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, Clostridium perfringens.

Readings/Bibliography

The didactic material presented during lectures is made directly available to students in electronic format

Recommended texts:

BARBUTI S., FARA GM., GIAMMANCO G., CARDUCCI A., CONIGLIO M.A., D'ALESSANDRO D., MONTAGNA M.T., TANZI M.L., ZOTTI C.M.

Igiene - Monduzzi ed., Bologna (2011).

or

SIGNORELLI C.

Igiene, Epidemiologia, Sanità pubblica - SEU, Roma (2017).

Teaching methods

Formal lectures

Assessment methods

The exam aims to verify the achievement of the following didactic objectives:

¨ To understand issues concerning the outbreak and spreading of diseases

¨ To have acquired knowledge of the main interventions to prevent diseases and promote health

The exam consists of an optional mid-term written test (multiple choice) and a final oral test.

Teaching tools

Video projector, PC

Office hours

See the website of Franca Zanetti