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Public Health & Epidemiology vocabulary · Measuring Health and Disease

Morbidity

Meaning in public health & epidemiology, with examples

/mɔːˈbɪdəti/nounCore term

In public health & epidemiology, morbidity means: The state of being ill or having a disease, or the amount of illness in a population, as opposed to mortality, which refers to death.

In Turkish: morbidite, hastalanma, hastalık durumu

How it is used

Usually paired with mortality: morbidity and mortality data, reduce morbidity and mortality. In clinical writing, 'comorbidity' means having another disease at the same time, such as diabetes in a patient with pneumonia.

Example sentences

  1. Air pollution causes significant morbidity, especially respiratory illness in children.

  2. The programme aims to reduce morbidity and mortality from malaria.

Common collocations

  • morbidity and mortality
  • high morbidity
  • morbidity data
  • comorbidity
  • mortality rateThe number of deaths in a population during a period, divided by the size of that population, often given per 1,000 or 100,000 people per year.
  • burden of diseaseThe total impact of a disease or health problem on a population, measured by deaths, illness, disability and sometimes economic cost.
  • DALYShort for disability-adjusted life year: one year of healthy life lost, either through early death or through living with illness or disability.
  • incidenceThe number of new cases of a disease in a population during a set period, usually given as a rate such as 25 new cases per 100,000 people per year.

More terms: Measuring Health and Disease

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.