On March 11, 2020 , the World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared COVID-19 a pandemic. It is a word that continues with us, every day, reminding us of the inclusion of a virus, Sars-Cov-2, and its variants, in our usual language. But, now that we have been through the pandemic for many months, another word is beginning to make its way, also with hope: endemic . What exactly? How is it different from the current state of the pandemic? We clear it up.
Not all infectious disease terms are the same, although they are often mistakenly used interchangeably. The distinction between the words “pandemic”, “epidemic” and “endemia” is clear:
Endemic
An endemic is a disease that is constantly present in the world but limited to a particular area . This means that the spread of the disease and the rate of illness are predictable, according to Columbia University. Many experts, including officials from the World Health Organization, say that the current COVID-19 pandemic could become the next “endemic” soon. Endemics are constant threats or dangers, as they occur regularly in certain regions. When a disease becomes endemic, the number of people who become ill remains relatively stable over time. Over a certain period of time, about the same number of people get the disease repeatedly.
Endemic means, therefore, that the virus is in the world and that we will have to learn to live with it in certain regions. Will not disappear. This makes disease spread and rates predictable.
Epidemic
An epidemic is a disease that affects a large number of people within a community, population or region. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) describe an epidemic as an unexpected increase in the number of disease cases in a specific geographic area. The main examples of epidemics are: yellow fever, smallpox, measles and polio.
What is the difference between epidemic and endemic? The epidemic is actively spreading, with new cases of the disease substantially exceeding expectations. Describe any problems that are out of control. For example, when COVID-19 was limited to Wuhan, China, it was an epidemic. Geographic spread caused it to become a pandemic. Endemicity, as we have seen, is the persistent presence of the disease, but without unexpected peaks, in a specific place.
Pandemic
A pandemic is an epidemic that spreads across several countries or continents. The simplest difference between an epidemic and a pandemic is to remember that the “p” in pandemic means that it has a “passport”; that is to say; a pandemic is an epidemic that travels. The World Health Organization (WHO) declares a pandemic when the growth of a disease is exponential. This means that the growth rate skyrockets, and each day the cases grow more than the day before. As has happened with COVID-19. In essence, it symbolizes that the virus covers a wide area, affecting various countries and populations. It is international and considered out of control.
