"An emerging infectious disease (EID) is an infectious disease whose incidence has increased recently (in the past 20 years), and could increase in the near future."
Exploration of new and resurging infectious diseases, and methods to control outbreaks.
Microbiology: Study of microorganisms that cause infectious diseases.
Epidemiology: Study of the spread, transmission, and control of infectious diseases.
Pathogenesis: The processes by which microorganisms cause diseases.
Immunology: The study of the immune system and its response to infectious diseases.
Virology: The study of viruses and their role in causing infectious diseases.
Bacteriology: The study of bacteria and their role in causing infectious diseases.
Parasitology: The study of parasites and their role in causing infectious diseases.
Vector-borne diseases: Infectious diseases transmitted by insects or other arthropods.
Zoonotic diseases: Infectious diseases transmitted from animals to humans.
Antimicrobial resistance: The ability of microorganisms to resist the effects of antimicrobial drugs.
Outbreak investigation: The process of tracking and controlling the spread of infectious diseases in a specific population.
Public health intervention strategies: Methods used to prevent and control the spread of infectious diseases.
Molecular epidemiology: The use of molecular techniques to study the spread and transmission of infectious diseases.
Surveillance systems: Methods used to monitor and track the occurrence of infectious diseases in a population.
Control measures: Strategies used to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, including vaccination programs and quarantine measures.
Ebola virus disease: A severe viral disease that is spread through direct contact with bodily fluids of infected people or animals, and is characterized by fever, muscle pain, and internal bleeding.
Zika virus: A virus spread primarily through the bite of infected mosquitoes, that can cause birth defects in newborns if contracted by pregnant women.
Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS): A coronavirus that causes respiratory illness, and is spread through close contact with infected individuals, most commonly in healthcare settings.
Lyme disease: A bacterial infection transmitted to humans by ticks, that causes symptoms such as fever, headache, and a characteristic "bull's eye" rash.
Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS): A viral respiratory illness that spread to multiple countries in 2003, causing severe respiratory symptoms that could progress to pneumonia.
West Nile virus: A virus transmitted to humans by infected mosquitoes, that can cause fever, headache, muscle weakness, and in rare cases, severe neurological disease.
COVID-19: A respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus, which emerged in late 2019 and has since spread rapidly throughout the world, causing a pandemic that has affected millions of people. Symptoms include fever, cough, and shortness of breath.
"EIDs have been increasing steadily since at least 1940."
"Human activity is the primary driver of this increase, with loss of biodiversity a leading mechanism."
"Emerging infections account for at least 12% of all human pathogens."
"EIDs can be caused by newly identified microbes, including novel species or strains of virus (e.g. novel coronaviruses, ebolaviruses, HIV)."
"Some EIDs evolve from a known pathogen, as occurs with new strains of influenza."
"EIDs may also result from the spread of an existing disease to a new population in a different geographic region, as occurs with West Nile fever outbreaks."
"Some known diseases can also emerge in areas undergoing ecologic transformation (as in the case of Lyme disease). Others can experience a resurgence as a re-emerging infectious disease, like tuberculosis (following drug resistance) or measles."
"Nosocomial (hospital-acquired) infections, such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, are emerging in hospitals and are extremely problematic in that they are resistant to many antibiotics."
"Of growing concern are adverse synergistic interactions between emerging diseases and other infectious and non-infectious conditions leading to the development of novel syndemics."
"For instance, most emergent viruses are zoonotic (whereas other novel viruses may have been circulating in the species without being recognized, as occurred with hepatitis C)."
"EIDs are zoonotic, deriving from pathogens present in animals, with only occasional cross-species transmission into human populations."
"...novel coronaviruses, ebolaviruses, HIV."
"Some known diseases can also emerge in areas undergoing ecologic transformation (as in the case of Lyme disease)."
"Nosocomial (hospital-acquired) infections, such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, are emerging in hospitals and are extremely problematic in that they are resistant to many antibiotics."
"Of growing concern are adverse synergistic interactions between emerging diseases and other infectious and non-infectious conditions leading to the development of novel syndemics."
"EIDs have been increasing steadily since at least 1940."
"Human activity is the primary driver of this increase, with loss of biodiversity a leading mechanism."
"Their many impacts can be economic and societal, as well as clinical."
"Some known diseases can also emerge in areas undergoing ecologic transformation (as in the case of Lyme disease)."