Word parts
morb disease-ity state or condition
What it means
Morbidity is illness, as opposed to mortality, which is death. For one client, it means being sick or having a complication; in public health, the morbidity rate is how many people in a population have a disease over a period of time. A comorbidity is another illness a client has at the same time as the main one, such as diabetes in a client admitted for pneumonia.
In a chart
"Comorbidities include type 2 diabetes, hypertension and chronic kidney disease."
Remember it
Morbidity is about sickness; mortality is about death.
At a glance
| Spanish | morbilidad |
|---|---|
| Also written | morbidities |
Related terms
complication
A new health problem that develops during or after an illness, procedure or treatment.
infectious disease
An illness caused by a germ such as a bacterium, virus, fungus or parasite.