Epidemiology Master’s program at Boston University

Epidemiology is a discipline that assesses the magnitude of public health problems, identifies the determinants of defects, disease and injury in human populations, and guides interventions designed to control or prevent them. The goals of this course are to: (1) introduce the basic principles and methods of epidemiology; (2) demonstrate their applicability to public health and research; and (3) provide fundamental skills needed to begin to interpret and critically evaluate literature relevant to public health professionals. Topics include measures of disease frequency and association, epidemiologic study designs, bias, confounding, random error, screening and causation.

SPH EP 722: Data Collection Methods for Epidemiologic Research Graduate Prerequisites: SPH PH 717 or SPH EP 714. This course will introduce students to common data collection sources and methods used currently in epidemiological research. Existing medical, insurance, and vital records will be discussed, along with traditional self, telephone, and in-person interviewing methods. Major sources of public health data will also be covered including the National Vital Statistics System, Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System, and National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). More novel approaches that include internet based surveys and social media will be covered as well. Lastly, we will touch on the complexities involved in the collection and storage of biological specimens. For all methods, issues associated with data quality control, validity and reliability will be covered. Students will practice developing their own surveys and other data collection tools and will evaluate data collection methods published within the scientific literature.

SPH EP 730: Epidemiology of Vaccine Preventable DiseasesGraduate Prerequisites: SPH PH 717; or consent from instructor. This course will provide students with a thorough understanding of the epidemiology and control of vaccine-preventable diseases. This will be accomplished by focusing on a different vaccine-preventable disease each week, and using that disease to illustrate epidemiologic principles and methods related to measuring vaccine efficacy and safety, overall impact, herd effects, special populations, adverse reactions, and public acceptability. Emphasis will be placed on current developments, outbreaks, controversies, study designs, and sources of bias. This course combines short lectures with in-class discussions and will provide students with practice and feedback in the critical review and design of epidemiologic studies.

SPH EP 735: Principles of Cancer EpidemiologyGraduate Prerequisites: The MPH epidemiology core course requirement. Students may not take both EP735 and EP752 for degree credit. This 2-credit course is designed to provide an overview of the important concepts and tools fundamental to the understanding, design, and conduct of cancer epidemiology studies. We will present a theoretical framework, providing an overview of the biology of cancer, as well as the major epidemiologic concepts critical to cancer epidemiology. We will study many of the major cancer sites, including breast, lung, colon, prostate, and cervix, reviewing both descriptive data on incidence and mortality, risk factors, and methodologic issues involved in studying these cancers. We will review several major risk factors for cancer, including tobacco, ionizing radiation, nutrition and physical activity, infections, and environmental exposures. Assignments for the class include readings, class participation including discussions of readings, and four written critiques of articles. Students may not take both EP735 and EP752 for degree credit.

SPH EP 740: Introduction to Epidemiology of AgingGraduate Prerequisites: SPH PH 717; or consent of instructor. This 2-credit course introduces public health students to major research topics regarding age-related diseases, disorders, and disabilities, as well as the special considerations in the design and execution of epidemiologic studies in this field. The main objectives of each session are to 1) use web-based or public-use data on the incidence, prevalence, risk factors, and health consequences of the disease or condition to describe why it is important to study in elderly adults; 2) critically review 1-2 articles to understand the current state of knowledge on the topic; and 3) examine the special methodological issues that conducting studies of the topic in an elderly study population pose. These objectives will be met by brief student presentations each week of the epidemiology of the disease/condition, lectures by researchers who are performing studies on that condition, and journal club discussions of relevant articles that students will critique. Students will synthesize this information in a short (8-10 page) grant proposal for a study on the prevention or treatment of a disease/condition that affects elderly adults.

SPH EP 748: Drug Epidemiology (formerly EP830)Graduate Prerequisites: SPH EP 770 or SPH EP 813; EP813 is recommended. With the participation of active researchers in pharmacoepidemiology, this course addresses a range of study designs and analytic techniques for observational studies on the utilization, safety and effectiveness of pharmaceuticals. Students will develop an understanding of how to plan, implement, analyze and criticize pharmacoepidemiologic studies. Lectures will provide methodological background and will cover applied issues typically encountered in pharmacoepidemiology. In addition, students will become acquainted with the drug approval process in the United States, and with issues particularly relevant or unique to the epidemiologic study of medications (e.g., risk management, post marketing surveillance).

SPH EP 749: Applications to Introductory Epidemiology This course is designed for students who want to gain practical experience articulating epidemiologic research questions, analyzing data, and reporting results. This course is closely synchronized with EP714 (Introduction of Epidemiology) and BS723 (Introduction to Statistical Computing), and applies knowledge of introductory epidemiologic principles to the analysis of observational data. The goals of this course are to (1) conceptualize research questions and develop testable hypotheses; (2) access and utilize data to calculate, interpret, and present disease measures; (3) apply introductory concepts of study design to evaluate peer-reviewed research; and (4) practice synthesizing and summarizing data through preparation of a scientific abstract, and critiquing and editing the work of peers.

SPH EP 752: Cancer EpidemiologyGraduate Prerequisites: SPH PH 717 or SPH EP 714. This course provides an overview of the important concepts fundamental to the understanding, design, and conduct of cancer epidemiology studies. The course commences with the descriptive epidemiology of cancer, including time trends in incidence and mortality, and geographic and demographic variation in cancer rates. An overview of the biology of cancer, and a review of the major epidemiologic concepts critical to cancer epidemiology is covered. The descriptive and analytic epidemiology of major cancer sites, including breast, lung, colon, prostate, cervix and melanoma, is discussed, as well as major risk factors for cancer, including tobacco, nutrition, infections, and environmental exposures. Students are required to pursue a cancer-related topic of their choosing in depth, developing a proposal for an epidemiologic study that will further current knowledge based on their literature review of the topic. Students may not take both EP752 and EP735 for degree credit.

SPH EP 758: Nutritional EpidemiologyGraduate Prerequisites: SPH PH 717; or consent from instructor. The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the discipline of nutritional epidemiology. In the class, we will focus on methodological issues relating to design, dietary assessment, and data analysis of studies on diet and disease. We will also review some of the literature relating nutrition to certain disease states, including coronary heart disease and cancer, in which we highlight methodological issues and interpretation of findings in nutritional epidemiologic research. Students completing this course will understand the basic principles of nutritional epidemiology and will be able to apply them in reading the literature and participating in nutrition research projects. This is a small, intermediate-level epidemiology class, which combines lectures with in-class discussion of classic and cutting-edge research articles. In addition, one-on-one meetings are set up with students throughout the semester to provide focused attention and facilitate mastery of the material.

SPH EP 759: Reproductive EpidemiologyGraduate Prerequisites: SPH PH 717 or SPH EP 714. This course surveys current knowledge concerning the epidemiology of reproductive heath across the lifespan. Topics vary from year to year but may include infertility, miscarriage, birth defects, menopause, uterine fibroids, gynecologic cancers, and male reproductive health. The course emphasizes epidemiologic methods and gives the student experience in the critical review and design of epidemiologic studies in this area.

SPH EP 762: Clinical EpidemiologyGraduate Prerequisites: And the biostatistics core requirements. This course introduces students to topics and methods in clinical epidemiology. Covered topics include those traditionally regarded within the purview of clinical epidemiology such as the evaluation of diagnostic tests (sensitivity, specificity, predictive value, and ROC curves), decision analysis, cost effectiveness analysis, outcomes assessment, and meta-analysis. At the conclusion of the course students will understand concepts of clinical epidemiology, know the indications for using each clinical epidemiology method, and be prepared to critically evaluate studies that employ these methods. Since this course uses numerous clinical examples, it is not recommended for those with no clinical experience.

SPH EP 763: Genetic EpidemiologyGraduate Prerequisites: The biostatistics and epidemiology MPH core requirements This course familiarizes students with general methods and principles of genetic epidemiology. Topics include basic human genetics, population genetics, pedigree analysis, linkage analysis in humans, twin studies, effects of inbreeding, genetics of common diseases, genetic association studies, and forensic genetics. The course emphasizes practical applications of existing methods to designing and executing genetic studies and to genetic counseling. This involves some critical evaluation of the scientific literature.

SPH EP 764: The Epidemiology of HIV/AIDS in the Developed and Developing WorldGraduate Prerequisites: SPH PH 717 or SPH EP 714. This course is designed to introduce students to an important and growing field - the epidemiology of AIDS. It is designed for those students who have a keen interest in HIV/AIDS in both the developed and developing world. This course will survey state-of-the art knowledge of the epidemiology of HIV and will emphasize epidemiologic principles and methods including: estimation of the incidence of HIV infection and AIDS, study design, and sources of bias. It will also give the student experience in the critical review of epidemiologic studies in this area.

SPH EP 770: Concepts and Methods in EpidemiologyGraduate Prerequisites: SPH PH 717 or SPH EP 714. This course develops the methodologic concepts and principles of epidemiology introduced in the MPH Quantitative Core course. The material covered is intended to extend the student's understanding of the elements of study design, data analysis, and inference in epidemiologic research, including issues related to bias, confounding, and stratified analysis. The course consists of lectures and workshop sessions. The workshop sessions are designed to reinforce the concepts/topics covered in the lectures. This course is not appropriate for students who have completed EP813.

SPH EP 775: Social EpidemiologyGraduate Prerequisites: SPH PH 717; or consent of instructor. The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the major social variables that affect population health, including socio-economic status, race/ethnicity, gender, neighborhood environment, corporate practices, and the criminal justice system. This course will cover the theoretical underpinnings of each construct, and will provide students with an in-depth discussion of the empirical research linking each to population health. Methods are introduced to operationalize each construct for the purpose of empirical application in epidemiology research.

SPH EP 784: The Epidemiology of Tuberculosis in the Developed and Developing WorldGraduate Prerequisites: SPH PH 717 or SPH EP 714. This course is designed for those students who have an interest in both tuberculosis and epidemiologic methods. This course will survey both the history of this storied disease as well as state of the art knowledge of the epidemiology of tuberculosis (including molecular techniques) and will emphasize epidemiologic principles and methods including: estimation of the incidence of primary tuberculosis, estimation of the incidence of reactivation tuberculosis, study design, and sources of bias. The course will also give the student practice and feedback in the critical review of epidemiologic studies in this area.

SPH EP 790: Mental Health EpidemiologyGraduate Prerequisites: SPH PH 717; or consent from instructor. Mental Health Epidemiology is the study of the distribution and determinants of mental health disorders among populations. This course begins with an overview of the history and development of the field, also referred to as psychiatric epidemiology, using several classic studies. We will examine mental health and mental illness across the life span: child, adolescent, adult and older adult. Students will learn about the major risk factors for and etiologic models of mental disorders. This will include examination of social factors, biological factors, genetic factors and their interactions. Special attention will be paid to the unique methodological and analytical issues highlighted by mental health epidemiologic research, and recent changes to clinical and research classifications (e.g., DSM-V, RDoc). Based on the research covered in this course, students will be asked to consider the implications for public health programs and interventions.

SPH EP 800: Microbes and Methods: Selected Topics in Outbreak InvestigationGraduate Prerequisites: BS723 or BS730 completed or concurrent. This course provides an overview of the important concepts fundamental to the understanding, design, and conduct of infectious disease outbreak investigations. The course will cover 1. The epidemiology and pathophysiology of selected infectious diseases. 2. Methodological issues related to investigating different types of outbreak. 3. Practical aspects of outbreak investigations (environmental analyses and communicating risk to the public). The course will primarily address common causes of outbreaks in this country (such as foodborne, respiratory, and hospital-based) but will touch on issues pertinent to outbreak investigations in the developing world. The course makes extensive use of SAS, so it is advised that students have completed or are enrolled concurrently in BS 723.