How Do We Know We're Sick? Crash Course Outbreak Science

The video explores the process of diagnosing infectious diseases, emphasizing the importance of clinical symptomatology and diagnostic testing. It explains how patient history and symptoms guide initial diagnosis, while tests like PCR and antigen tests confirm the presence of pathogens. The video also discusses the accuracy of tests, highlighting sensitivity and specificity, and concludes with a case study on Lassa fever, illustrating the practical application of these diagnostic tools in preventing outbreaks.

What are the key measures of accuracy for diagnostic tests?

How do sensitivity and specificity affect the interpretation of test results?

What considerations are made when choosing between different types of diagnostic tests?

Why is it important to quickly identify infected individuals during an outbreak?