Endemic

In epidemiology, endemia (from the French endémie, and this from the Greek ἔνδημος, transliterated éndēmos, "from one's own territory") is a term used to refer to a pathological process that remains stationary in a given population or space for long periods of time. They can be infectious or non-infectious diseases, as the term can be used for a variety of diseases or physiological conditions. The disease can be maintained in the host population of a given geographic region over time (years) at a stable level, including seasonal variations.

The degree of endemia of a disease is classified according to the intensity of transmission:

1. Hypoendemic: It means that the transmission of the disease is minimal and its effects are not important.
2. Mesoendemica: It means that the disease is established in small communities. The intensity of the transmission is variable, according to local circumstances.
3. Hyperendemic: It means that the transmission intensity of the disease in the reference area is persistent but temporary. Immunity is insufficient to prevent the effects of the disease.
4. Holoendemica: It means that the disease has a high degree of intensity. Its transmission is perennial, with wide geographical distribution, as a result of an immune response in different age groups, particularly adults.

In order of importance in terms of the degree of spread of a disease or the number of people affected, we speak of endemic, epidemic and pandemic (the latter when it affects more than one continent).

Examples of endemic diseases are malaria in certain tropical or hot countries in America, Southeast Asia and Africa, Chagas disease, dengue fever, yellow fever, and whooping cough, among others.