EPIDEMIOLOGY - AN ESSENTIAL SCIENCE FOR SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY ANDAUDIOLOGY

This article introduces epidemiology as a health science that is essen tial as a complement to the basic laboratory and clinical sciences in speech-language pathology and audiology. A contemporary definition of epidemiology is presented. Principles of epidemiology, including causa l criteria, and use and misuse of concepts such as incidence, prevalen ce, and risk are elaborated from the perspective of practitioners and researchers in human communication sciences and disorders. The ubiquit y of epidemiologic data in the news media illustrates the complexities of data interpretation. (C) 1997 by Elsevier Science Inc.