Difference Between Pandemic and Epidemic

Word Pandemic and Epidemic both describe widespread diseases. Read this post to know more.

In March 2020, the majority of the world came to a standstill. The perpetual stream of vehicles and people on the roads stopped for what felt like forever.

From rushing every morning to catch the train or metro or bus to being unable to step out of the house, our lives changed drastically.

In the early months of 2020, the Novel Coronavirus, or Covid-19 shrouded the world in despair and uncertainty.

It originated in China in late 2019 and from there; it spread all over the world. Facing an unexpected threat, humankind was forced to bow down before this deadly virus.

According to the World Health Organisation, as of 19 August 2022, Covid-19 has taken the lives of 6,443,306 people. The figure might be even greater than it is recorded.

It is with the advent of Coronavirus that people became familiar with a lot of medical terms, two of them being ‘pandemic’ and ‘epidemic’.

Also Read: Difference Between Incidence and Prevalence

What is the Difference Between a Pandemic and an Epidemic?

Both terms describe the range of a disease or a pathogen, or simply speaking, how far a disease or a pathogen has spread.

Depending on the area of a geographical region and the size of the population, a disease is termed a pandemic or an epidemic. But how do they differ from each other? Let’s have a look at their definitions first.

Also Read: Difference Between Cold and Flu

What is a Pandemic?

The WHO defines a disease as a pandemic that spreads over a large geographical area, such as over two or more countries, and affects the majority of the population.

It grows exponentially in a short span of time. A disease has only been declared a pandemic if it crosses international boundaries and causes the risk of millions of deaths happening in the world.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has described six phases of a pandemic-

• In Phase 1, a virus or pathogen begins to circulate in animals which may or may not spread to humans.
• In Phase 2, the virus is detected in animals.
• In Phase 3, the disease begins to develop as humans come in contact with animals.
• In Phase 4, human-to-human contact leads to the risk of a major community outbreak of the disease.
• In Phase 5, the disease spreads among humans in at least two countries in the same region.
• In Phase 6, the disease spreads to a third country, indicating the development of a pandemic.

Before Covid-19, there occurred many other pandemics such as ‘Swine Flu’, ‘HIV/AIDS’, ‘The Black Death’, ‘Spanish Flu’ etc.

Also Read: Difference Between Active and Passive Immunity

What is an Epidemic?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) describes an epidemic as an unexpected increase in the number of cases caused by a disease in a specific geographical area.

An epidemic is limited to a country and only transforms into a pandemic when it crosses international geographical boundaries.

A disease can be classified as an epidemic when infectious pathogens or viruses suddenly become prevalent in a certain region.

It may have existed in that area before its outbreak or may be new to the region. It quickly spreads to people and they start getting sick.

A few examples of the epidemic would be ‘Smallpox’, ‘Cholera’, ‘Dengue Fever’, ‘YellowFever’, ‘Bubonic Plague’, ‘Measles’ etc.

Many times people confuse the outbreak of the Ebola Virus as a pandemic since it cost the lives of millions of people. But since it restricted its devastation to Africa, it was declared as an epidemic.

Also Read: Difference Between Viral and Bacterial Tonsillitis

Final Take

The basic difference between a pandemic and an epidemic boils down to their area of destruction. If a virus like Covid-19 affects numerous countries, it will be declared as a pandemic whereas if a virus like Zika virus or Ebola virus only affects a single country or one or two countries in the same region, it will be declared as an epidemic.

The difference between the two is their degree of reach and not their severity or lethality. To prevent either of the two from occurring, it is a must for people to take utmost care of their hygiene, surroundings, and health.