International Infection Prevention Week on October, 2024: what is the deadliest disease in history?
International Infection Prevention Week 2024.
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AIDS surpasses black death as deadliest disease in history
In terms of illness and death, AIDS is worse than the Black Death of the 14th century. Ninety five per cent of new infections of HIV are in the world's poor countries and heterosexual transmission is responsible for most of these, reports Peter Lamptey, in this week's BMJ.
Programmes to change behaviour and promote condoms and treatment of sexually transmitted infections are effective in preventing the spread of HIV. However, large scale prevention efforts have been successful in only a few countries, mainly because of inadequate resources and lack of international commitment, argues the author.
HIV/AIDS is likely to surpass the Black Death as the worst pandemic ever, as without access to drugs, most of the 40 million people currently living with HIV will die, writes the author. We urgently need an effective and safe vaccine, an affordable cure, and intensified prevention, care, and support programmes, he concludes.
If you are afflicted with hepatitis A, and still under medication can you have sex with your wif?
Hepatitis A
What is the Definition of Hepatitis A?
Description of Hepatitis A
Causes of Hepatitis A
Symptoms of Hepatitis A
Diagnosis of Hepatitis A
Treatment for Hepatitis A
Prevention of Hepatitis A
What Questions to ask Your Doctor About Hepatitis A?
What is the Definition of Hepatitis A?
Hepatitis A is a viral infection of the liver caused by the Hepatitis A virus (HAV). It also can be caused by some medications and chemicals that damage the liver.
Description of Hepatitis A
Hepatitis literally refers to any inflammation of the liver. In fact, there are five forms of acute viral Hepatitis that are often clinically indistinguishable from one another. These diseases are unrelated to each other except by the fact that they all cause liver damage.
It is important not to confuse hepatitis A with any other viral Hepatitis. Each has its own mode of transmission and associated risk factors. Hepatitis A, for example, is transmitted by the fecal-oral route, whereas Hepatitis B is often transmitted through sexual contact or IV drug abuse.
Causes of Hepatitis A
Hepatitis A, formerly called infectious hepatitis, is most common in children in developing countries, but is being seen more frequently in developed nations and is the most frequent cause of hepatitis in the United States.
Hepatitis A is thought to be spread by a virus from an infected person's feces that is directly or indirectly contaminating food, raw shellfish, drinking water, cooking utensils or someone else's fingers. People most at risk are children who go to day care, international travelers, military personnel stationed abroad, homosexual males, and close contacts of people infected with hepatitis A.
Symptoms of Hepatitis A
The most common symptoms of hepatitis A are fatigue, nausea and/or vomiting, low fever, loss of appetite, dark urine, rash, and jaundice (yellowing of the skin). Symptoms and signs of hepatitis A can range from none to minimal in the early stages of the illness, to noticeable nausea, abdominal pain, fever, and malaise in the acute phase.
The incubation period is two to six weeks after infection. Hepatitis A is considered an acute condition.
Diagnosis of Hepatitis A
The doctor will take a thorough medical history and may palpate the area over the liver to check for tenderness or enlargement.
If the skin becomes jaundiced and the person is exhibiting other symptoms of hepatitis, the doctor will do various lab tests, such as blood tests and liver panel tests. Additional lab tests include the hepatitis A antibody tests ELISA II and RIBA II.
Rarely, the doctor may also perform a liver biopsy where a small portion of the liver would be taken for further examination under a microscope.
Treatment for Hepatitis A
There is no specific treatment for hepatitis A, and most people recover completely from and spontaneously. Hospitalization is usually only required if the patient is dehydrated or if the symptoms are severe. At home, getting adequate bed-rest and drinking plenty of fluids will be recommended during recovery. The doctor will also recommend abstinence from alcohol and from drugs that are harmful to the liver during this time.
Prevention of Hepatitis A
To prevent hepatitis A, remember to:
Wash hands well after using any washroom.
Eat only freshly cooked foods.
Drink only commercially bottled water or boiled water in places where sanitation and the water supply are questionable.
Do not drink drinks with ice in them.
Do not eat non-peelable raw fruits or vegetables unless cleaned thoroughly.
Maintain a reasonably high index of suspicion while traveling anywhere and be appropriately cautious about ingesting food or water where one might suspect hepatitis A is more common.
Get a hepatitis A vaccination before traveling to areas such as Mexico, eastern Europe and developing countries. Short term protection for hepatitis A can also be provided by immune globulin, including its administration up to two weeks following exposure.
What Questions to ask Your Doctor About Hepatitis A?
Who is at risk of contracting hepatitis A?
What preventive measures can be taken?
Is there any damage to the liver?
What if I become pregnant?
my husband is suffering from CHIKUNGUNIYA. can we sleep on the same bed?
Chikungunya virus is highly infective and disabling but is not transmissible between ... International Classification of Disease Codes for Chikungunya Fever
New!Chikungunya Fever Fact Sheet
What is chikungunya fever?
Chikungunya fever is a viral disease transmitted to humans by the bite of infected mosquitoes. Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is a member of the genus Alphavirus, in the family Togaviridae. CHIKV was first isolated from the blood of a febrile patient in Tanzania in 1953, and has since been identified repeatedly in west, central and southern Africa and many areas of Asia, and has been cited as the cause of numerous human epidemics in those areas since that time. The virus circulates throughout much of Africa, with transmission thought to occur mainly between mosquitoes and monkeys.
What type of illness does chikungunya virus cause?
CHIKV infection can cause a debilitating illness, most often characterized by fever, headache, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, muscle pain, rash, and joint pain. The term ‘chikungunya’ is Swahili for ‘that which bends up.’
The incubation period (time from infection to illness) can be 2-12 days, but is usually 3-7 days. “Silent” CHIKV infections (infections without illness) do occur; but how commonly this happens is not yet known.
Acute chikungunya fever typically lasts a few days to a couple of weeks, but as with dengue, West Nile fever, o'nyong-nyong fever and other arboviral fevers, some patients have prolonged fatigue lasting several weeks. Additionally, some patients have reported
incapacitating joint pain, or arthritis which may last for weeks or months. The prolonged joint pain associated with CHIKV is not typical of dengue. Co-circulation of dengue fever in many areas may mean that chikungunya fever cases are sometimes clinically misdiagnosed as dengue infections, therefore the incidence of chikungunya fever could be much higher than what has been previously reported.
No deaths, neuroinvasive cases, or hemorrhagic cases related to CHIKV infection have been conclusively documented in the scientific literature.
CHIKV infection (whether clinical or silent) is thought to confer life-long immunity.
How do humans become infected with chikungunya virus?
CHIKV is spread by the bite of an infected mosquito. Mosquitoes become infected when they feed on a person infected with CHIKV. Monkeys, and possibly other wild animals, may also serve as reservoirs of the virus. Infected mosquitoes can then spread the virus to other humans when they bite.
Aedes aegypti (the yellow fever mosquito), a household container breeder and aggressive daytime biter which is attracted to humans, is the primary vector of CHIKV to humans. Aedes albopictus (the Asian tiger mosquito)may also play a role in human transmission is Asia, and various forest-dwelling mosquito species in Africa have been found to be infected with the virus.
Where does chikungunya virus occur?
The geographic range of the virus is Africa and Asia. For information on current outbreaks, consult CDC’s Travelers’ Health website (www.cdc.gov/travel). Given the current large CHIKV epidemics and the world wide distribution of Aedes aegypti, there is a risk of importation of CHIKV into new areas by infected travelers.
How is chikungunya virus infection treated?
No vaccine or specific antiviral treatment for chikungunya fever is available. Treatment is symptomatic--rest, fluids, and ibuprofen, naproxen, acetaminophen, or paracetamol may relieve symptoms of fever and aching. Aspirin should be avoided
Infected persons should be protected from further mosquito exposure (staying indoors and/or under a mosquito net during the first few days of illness) so that they can't contribute to the transmission cycle.
What can people do to prevent becoming infected with chikungunya virus?
The best way to avoid CHIKV infection is to prevent mosquito bites. There is no vaccine or preventive drug. Prevention tips are similar to those for dengue or West Nile virus:
Use insect repellent containing an DEET or another EPA-registered active ingredient on exposed skin. Always follow the directions on the package.
Wear long sleeves and pants (ideally treat clothes with permethrin or another repellent).
Have secure screens on windows and doors to keep mosquitoes out.
Get rid of mosquito breeding sites by emptying standing water from flower pots, buckets and barrels. Change the water in pet dishes and replace the water in bird baths weekly. Drill holes in tire swings so water drains out. Keep children's wading pools empty and on their sides when they aren't being used.
Additionally, a person with chikungunya fever or dengue should limit their exposure to mosquito bites in order to avoid further spreading the infection. The person should stay indoors or under a mosquito net.