A LITTLE LIGHTBULB MOMENT
Community health, leadership, ethics and older-adult care
Incidence versus prevalence
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New sparks versus all the embers
The idea behind the cue
Incidence measures new cases over a time period. Prevalence measures how many people have a condition at a point in time or during a defined period. A disease can have low incidence but high prevalence if it lasts a long time.
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Short & simple
New sparks versus all the embers
Acronym
IP — Impatient Pancakes.
Story
A health worker counts the fresh flu cases that appeared this week, then counts everyone still sick on Friday. The first pile is incidence; the second is prevalence.
Connect the pieces
- I (Impatient) → Incidence: Measures new cases over a time period.
- P (Pancakes) → Prevalence: Measures how many people have a condition at a point in time or during a defined period.
- Impatient · Incidence: Measures new cases over a time period.
- Pancakes · Prevalence: Measures how many people have a condition at a point in time or during a defined period.
Know the limits
Prevalence may be point or period prevalence; incidence always refers to new cases.
Further reading · OpenStax nursing textbooks ↗Check your understanding
A county reports how many residents were newly diagnosed with measles during April. What measure is this?
A. Mortality rate
B. Case fatality rate
C. Incidence
D. Prevalence
Reveal explanation
Incidence
New diagnoses over a time period are incidence. Prevalence counts all existing cases, not just new ones.