Disease prevalence

Disease prevalence refers to the total number of people who have a specific disease at a given point or over a certain period. It helps us understand how widespread the disease is within a population. For example, if out of 1,000 people, 50 have diabetes, the prevalence of diabetes is 5%. Prevalence includes both new and existing cases, providing a snapshot of the disease burden. It is different from incidence, which only counts new cases. Knowing prevalence helps health officials allocate resources, plan public health strategies, and measure the impact of disease over time.