Textbook of Clinical Epidemiology by Unknown

Author:Unknown
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
ISBN: 9789819936229
Publisher: Springer Nature Singapore

10.1.2.3 The Three Levels of Prevention of Disease

Primary Prevention

Primary prevention, also known as causation prevention, refers to taking measures against etiology or risk factors to reduce the level of harmful exposure, enhance the ability of the individual to combat harmful exposure, prevent the occurrence of a disease (or injury), or at least delay the occurrence of the disease when exposed to the disease (or injury). Primary prevention is a fundamental measure to eliminate a disease (or injury).

A variety of measures are needed for primary prevention, such as preventing harmful exposure in the environment, improving the body’s resistance (e.g., immunization), or protecting the individual from harmful exposures, such as the elderly with osteoporosis wearing hip protection. ① High-risk strategy: high-risk strategy is based on clinical medicine aiming to achieve the first-level prevention strategy. High-risk strategy refers to taking targeted measures to reduce the level of risk exposure and its risk of future disease for small group of individuals with a risk of high incidence in the future. For example, adults are regularly assessed for risk factors for cardiovascular disease and appropriate measures are taken for those high-risk individuals, such as stopping smoking, controlling salt intake, eating more fruits and vegetables, and so on.

The limited availability of medical information means that healthcare is a system of limited supply and that there is a need to give priority to groups that are most likely to benefit or may benefit most. The use of resources by high-risk strategies may be more cost-effective. However, most lifestyles, such as eating, smoking, and exercising, are largely influenced and limited by the code of conduct and the behavior of the people around us in our society. The high-risk strategy, in essence, requires that the minorities behave differently; therefore, this undoubtedly limits the effectiveness of this strategy. If the vast majority of cases of a disease occur in a small group of easily identifiable populations, high-risk strategies are enough to control the disease and interventions for this group are effective and affordable. However, when the most fundamental cause of the problem, also known as the cause mentioned above, reaches the entire population, treating only those patients and the most vulnerable individuals, the tip of the iceberg, is a palliative solution.

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