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Outbreak, Epidemic, Pandemic

It is important that, in situations like the one we are currently experiencing, we know how to differentiate between an outbreak, epidemic, and pandemic, as depending on how a disease is classified, we will need to react and take the necessary provisional measures.

Both vary depending on the ability of the infectious agent to spread. In this article, we will understand when an outbreak evolves into an epidemic and when an epidemic becomes a pandemic.

Outbreak

An outbreak is a classification used in epidemiology to denote the sudden appearance of a disease due to infection in a specific location and a specific time. A clear example of this situation is when food poisoning occurs, leading to cases over two or three days. Another example is outbreaks of meningitis or measles, which can last for two or three months.

Epidemic

An epidemic, on the other hand, is when a disease actively spreads because the outbreak becomes uncontrollable and persists over time. This leads to an increase in cases in a specific geographic area.

Pandemic

For a pandemic to be declared, two criteria must be met: the epidemic must affect more than one continent, and cases in each country should no longer be imported but caused by community transmission. For example, in the case of the coronavirus, while the cases were imported and the epidemic was localized in China, the situation was considered an epidemic. However, when it spread to other countries and there was community transmission in more than one continent, it became a pandemic.
Therefore, we know that an outbreak is the appearance of an epidemic in a small geographical area and over a short period of time, while in epidemics, many people in a region or country become infected simultaneously with a disease, such as the flu during the winter season. It turns into a pandemic when it spreads to different countries and continents. During a pandemic, there is a high degree of virulence and the disease spreads easily from one geographical area to another. Knowing all this and hoping we don’t need to use it in the coming years, we should be more prepared and aware of how to react to each case. It is crucial to always stay informed and not remain misled, as the necessary measures to face the situation will vary depending on the classification.

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