Epi curves have a characteristic shape- they start low, rise up over time (as the epidemic affects more people), and eventually fall (as the epidemic affects less people).
The graphic above is an example of an epi curve used during the 2008 Salmonella outbreak due to a contaminated water supply in Alamosa, CO.
Epidemiologic curves are graphs that are used to:
• monitor disease occurrence,
• detect outbreaks,
• generate hypotheses about the cause of an outbreak,
• monitor the impact of intervention efforts, and
• predict the course of an epidemic.
“Epi Curves”, as public health professionals refer to them, are created during disease outbreaks to visually collect and interpret data. This data can be useful to other medical and emergency response partners, however, it is important to work with public health professionals to obtain this information. Only trained epidemiologists should be involved in developing and interpreting epidemiological curves.