Epidemics

The term 'epidemic' is used to describe the spread of a disease or condition to a large number of people. The word 'epidemic' is derived from the Greek word 'epi', meaning 'upon', and 'demos', meaning 'people'. Hippocrates, a Greek physician who lived in the fourth century BC, was one of the first to use the term 'epidemic'. He used it to describe the spread of disease through a population. Read in English, unabridged.