Table of Contents
What are emerging and reemerging diseases?
Emerging diseases include HIV infections, SARS, Lyme disease, Escherichia coli O157:H7 (E. coli), hantavirus, dengue fever, West Nile virus, and the Zika virus. Reemerging diseases are diseases that reappear after they have been on a significant decline.
What is an emerging pathogen?
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases defines “emerging infectious diseases/pathogens” as those “that have newly appeared in a population or have existed but are rapidly increasing in incidence or geographic range.” Many of the emerging pathogens of greatest concern are pathogenic viruses.
What is the host range of a pathogen?
Host range, defined as the number of host species used by a pathogen, is a simple metric that is central to understanding pathogen epidemiology and pathogenicity. Host range conditions the transmission dynamics and survival of pathogens and is predicted to be a major factor in their evolution.
What does it mean when a disease is emerging?
Emerging infectious diseases are those whose incidence in humans has increased in the past 2 decades or threaten to increase in the near future.
How do you control emerging and reemerging diseases?
- Strengthen infectious disease surveillance and response.
- Improve methods for gathering and evaluating surveillance data.
- Ensure the use of surveillance data to improve public health practice and medical treatment.
- Strengthen global capacity to monitor and respond to emerging infectious diseases.
How do we prevent emerging and reemerging disease?
- Improve the awareness of decision and policy makers and obtain their commitment to improve available gaps.
- Improve biorisk management (biosafety and biosecurity risk management) by a national plan implementation.
- Strengthen infection control and prevention in hospitals.
What major types of hosts can viruses infect?
Viruses infect all types of organisms, including animals and plants, as well as bacteria and archaea. Approximately 5000 different viruses have been described in detail at the current time, although it is known that there are millions of distinct types.
WHO top emerging diseases?
The initial list of disease priorities needing urgent R&D attention includes: Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever, Ebola virus, Marburg virus, Lassa fever, MERS and SARS coronavirus diseases, Nipah and Rift Valley fever.
Why are new diseases emerging?
Several factors contribute to the emergence and re-emergence of infectious diseases, but most can be linked with the increasing number of people living and moving on earth: rapid and intense international travel; overcrowding in cities with poor sanitation; changes in handling and processing of large quantities of food …
How can emerging diseases be prevented?
Washing your hands with soap and water, thoroughly and frequently. Covering your nose and mouth when you sneeze or cough. Disinfecting frequently touched surfaces in your home and workplace. Avoiding contact with sick people or sharing personal items with them.
How many pathogens are considered emerging or reemerging?
Of the total, 177 are regarded as emerging or reemerging. Zoonotic pathogens are twice as likely to be in this category as are nonzoonotic pathogens. Emerging and reemerging pathogens are not strongly associated with particular types of nonhuman hosts, but they are most likely to have the broadest host ranges.
When is a species regarded as emerging or reemerging?
A species was regarded as emerging or reemerging if any recognized variant fell into this category (e.g., Escherichia coli O157, H5N1 influenza A). We considered the following pathogen groups: viruses (including prions), bacteria (including rickettsia), fungi (including microsporidia), protozoa, and helminths.
Which is the most likely source of emerging infectious disease?
However, although zoonotic pathogens do represent the most likely source of emerging and reemerging infectious disease, only a small minority have proved capable of causing major epidemics in the human population.
What kind of pathogens are included in the pathogen group?
We considered the following pathogen groups: viruses (including prions), bacteria (including rickettsia), fungi (including microsporidia), protozoa, and helminths. We did not consider ectoparasites (ticks and lice).