Basic Reproductive Number

The Basic Reproductive Number, often called R₀ (R naught), measures how contagious an infectious disease is. It represents the average number of people one infected person will transmit the disease to in a fully susceptible population. If R₀ is greater than 1, the disease can spread and potentially cause an outbreak. If R₀ is less than 1, the infection will likely decline and eventually disappear. It helps public health officials understand how quickly a disease may spread and guides strategies to control it, such as vaccination or social distancing.