Related topics: swine flu , vaccine , hiv , influenza , flu
Infectious disease
hideAn infectious disease is a clinically evident disease resulting from the presence of pathogenic microbial agents, including pathogenic viruses, pathogenic bacteria, fungi, protozoa, multicellular parasites, and aberrant proteins known as prions. These pathogens are able to cause disease in animals and/or plants. Infectious pathologies are usually qualified as contagious diseases (also called communicable diseases) due to their potential of transmission from one person or species to another. Transmission of an infectious disease may occur through one or more of diverse pathways including physical contact with infected individuals. These infecting agents may also be transmitted through liquids, food, body fluids, contaminated objects, airborne inhalation, or through vector-borne spread.
The term infectivity describes the ability of an organism to enter, survive and multiply in the host, while the infectiousness of a disease indicates the comparative ease with which the disease is transmitted to other hosts. An infection however, is not synonymous with an infectious disease, as an infection may not cause important clinical symptoms or impair host function.
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News tagged with infectious diseases
Think again about keeping little ones so squeaky clean
Dec 08, 2009 |
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A new Northwestern University study suggests that American parents should ease up on antibacterial soap and perhaps allow their little ones a romp or two in the mud --- or at least a much better acquaintance with everyday ...
Aspirin misuse may have made 1918 flu pandemic worse
Oct 02, 2009 |
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The devastation of the 1918-1919 influenza pandemic is well known, but a new article suggests a surprising factor in the high death toll: the misuse of aspirin. Appearing in the November 1 issue of Clinical Infectious Di ...
Prostate cancer may be caused by virus, study indicates
Sep 18, 2009 |
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Mounting evidence indicates that prostate cancer is an infectious disease caused by a recently identified virus.
Studying ancient man to learn to prevent disease
Sep 15, 2009 |
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Health care as we know it didn't exist 3,000 years ago. But along the Georgia coast, the Pacific Northwest, and coastal Brazil, people grew tall and strong and lived relatively free of disease. They ate game, fish, shellfish ...
A world first: Vaccine helps prevent HIV infection
Medicine & Health / HIV & AIDS
Sep 24, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- In an encouraging development, an investigational vaccine regimen has been shown to be well-tolerated and to have a modest effect in preventing HIV infection in a clinical trial involving ...
Piece from childhood virus may save soldiers' lives
Sep 06, 2009 |
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A harmless shard from the shell of a common childhood virus may halt a biological process that kills a significant percentage of battlefield casualties, heart attack victims and oxygen-deprived newborns, according to research ...
Cells defend themselves from viruses, bacteria with armor of protein errors
Nov 25, 2009 |
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When cells are confronted with an invading virus or bacteria or exposed to an irritating chemical, they protect themselves by going off their DNA recipe and inserting the wrong amino acid into new proteins to defend them ...
New explanation for nature's hardiest life form
Nov 12, 2009 |
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Got food poisoning? The cause might be bacterial spores, en extremely hardy survival form of bacteria, a nightmare for health care and the food industry and an enigma for scientists. Spore-forming bacteria, present almost ...
Vaccines and autism: Many hypotheses, but no correlation
Jan 30, 2009 |
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An extensive new review summarizes the many studies refuting the claim of a link between vaccines and autism. The review, in the February 15, 2009 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases and now available online, looks at the ...
Self-digestion as a means of survival
Feb 27, 2009 |
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In times of starvation, cells tighten their belts: they start to digest their own proteins and cellular organs. The process - known as autophagy - takes place in special organelles called autophagosomes. It is a strategy ...
Is swine flu 'the big one' or a flu that fizzles?
Apr 27, 2009 |
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(AP) -- As reports of a unique form of swine flu erupt around the world, the inevitable question arises: Is this the big one?
Animals now picking up bugs from people, study shows
Oct 26, 2009 |
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Globalisation and industrialisation are causing diseases to spread from humans to animals, a study has shown.
Swine Flu vs. Seasonal Flu: Be Prepared
Aug 13, 2009 |
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It hit in April but continues to wreak havoc locally and globally. H1N1 -- also known as swine flu -- has sickened over 43,000 people nationwide and it’s not disappearing anytime soon, says University of Cincinnati infectious ...
Researchers discover a new antibacterial lead
Sep 27, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Antibiotic resistance has been a significant problem for hospitals and health-care facilities for more than a decade. But despite the need for new treatment options, there have been only two ...
Steroids aid recovery from pneumonia, researchers say
Oct 14, 2008 |
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Adding corticosteroids to traditional antimicrobial therapy might help people with pneumonia recover more quickly than with antibiotics alone, UT Southwestern Medical Center scientists have found.
