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Infectious Diseases . . . and How to Avoid Them

Epidemics and Pandemics


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Epidemics
An epidemic has been defined in several ways.
  1. More cases of a disease than usually occur in a particular place at a particular time,
  2. More cases of a condition than would normally be expected in a given population,
  3. A widespread occurrence of an infectious disease in a community at a particular time,
  4. A disease that spreads quickly and affects many individuals at the same time.

Examples of Epidemics are:
  1. Dengue Fever (2019-), in Latin America, with 2000 deaths.
  2. Measles (2019-) in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with over 6,000 deaths
  3. Cholera (2016-) in Yemen, with 4,000 deaths
  4. Polio (1916) in the USA, with 7000 deaths.
  5. Measles (1875-186) in Fiji, with 40,000 deaths, 1/3 of the population at the time.
  6. "Cocoliztli" (1545-1548) in Aztec Mexico, with 5 to 15 million deaths, 25% to 75% of the population, possibly due to Salmonella or a hemorrhagic virus.


Pandemics
A pandemic occurs when epidemics spread over many countries or continents.
Examples of Pandemics are:
  1. SARS-CoV-2 (2020-), with over 3 million deaths and on-going
  2. Ebola (2013-2016), with 11,000 deaths
  3. MERS (2012-), with 800+ deaths and on-going
  4. "Swine flu" (2009-2010) with over 150,000 deaths
  5. SARS (2002-2004), with 700+ deaths
  6. HIV/AIDS (1981-) with over 30 million deaths, and ongoing
  7. "Spanish" flu (1918-1920), with 20-50 million deaths worldwide
  8. "Russian flu" (1889-1890, with 1 million deaths
  9. "Black Death" (1346-1353), with 75-200 million deaths, 30-60% of the population

Oubreaks
A outbreak occurs when there are more cases of a disease than would be expected, in a localized community.
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