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—from the Epidemiological Bulletin, Vol. 20 No. 1, March 1999— EditorialThe PAHO Epidemiological Bulletin (EB) is now in its twentieth year. Beginning with its first issue in 1980, the EB has established itself as a source of epidemiological information for the Region of the Americas. Covering the practice and teaching of epidemiology, the EB is committed to stimulating the use of epidemiology among the Member Countries in the Region. With respect to epidemiological training and promotion, the EB actively participated in reporting the conclusions of the 1983 regional seminar on Current Uses and Future Prospects in Epidemiology, held in Buenos Aires. The EB’s reporting of the recommendations from the XIV Conference of Latin American and Caribbean Association of Schools of Public Health, with the participation of the U.S. Association of Schools of Public Health (Taxco, Mexico, 1987), was taken into consideration in the restructuring of epidemiological training programs at national schools of public health and health services throughout the Region. During that time, practically all the countries held national conferences on epidemiology in order to promote its knowledge and practices in the areas of disease control, health services organization, and health policy and planning. The EB has published articles on the health situation, the frequency and distribution of communicable, noncommunicable, emerging, and reemerging diseases most significant to public health, as well as information related to disease surveillance, prevention, and control. Many important epidemiological events have been reported over this period, including: the 1981 epidemic of dengue hemorrhagic fever in Cuba, the onset of AIDS and its rapid spread through the Americas; the 1991 reappearance of cholera in Peru; the eradication of poliomyelitis; and the impact of Hurricane Mitch on Central America. The EB has also reported on resolutions and recommendations of international significance concerning disease prevention and control, policy formulation, and strengthening of health services infrastructure. In the context of the Health For All strategy (HFA), the EB has given priority to publishing summaries of how epidemiology has been applied in the programming and evaluation of health services coverage. The EB makes every effort to adapt to the diverse interests of its readership, providing articles on epidemiological theory, methodology, and practices, as well as the decentralization and reform of the health sector. In addition to coverage of health situation analysis and trends, future editions of the EB will regularly include brief conceptual and methodological articles, emphasizing public health surveillance, situation analysis, and tools for measuring inequities in health. The EB will report norms, standards, and recommendations for the practice of epidemiology, with a view to supporting the definition and performance of the state essential public health functions. News on courses and meetings of interest will be also included, along with reports on public health meetings, regional projects, and articles of special interest by outside authors. Beginning in June 1999, the EB will be available on the World Wide Web at: http://www.paho.org/english/sha/beindexe.htm. The new format will simplify editing and management tasks, while reducing costs. Likewise, the electronic format will make it possible to expand and illustrate articles in greater detail, provided that they are relevant to the field of epidemiology and of general interest. Thus, the EB’s electronic format will allow immediate access to greater numbers of readers in the field of epidemiology and public health.
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