Epidemic scorecard
Epidemic scorecard: A tally of epidemics.
The scorecard, based on estimates from the World Health Organization in 2003, reads as follows:
Tuberculosis: 8 million new cases and 2 million deaths a year. A third of the world population has TB. Drug-resistant incurable strains on the rise.
Malaria: 300-500 million new cases and a million deaths a year. Drug-resistant forms are increasing.
Hepatitis B: 10-30 million new cases and a million death a year from hepatitis B, a leading cause of cirrhosis, liver cancer and liver failure.
Diarrheal diseases: 2.7 billion new cases and 1.9 million deaths, mainly of children, per year from cholera, shigella, typhoid, E. coli, and other agents of diarrhea.
HIV/AIDS: 5.5 million new cases of HIV infection and 3.1 million deaths a year from AIDS.
Measles: 30 million new cases and nearly 900,000 deaths a year. Measles (also called rubeola) is entirely preventable with a vaccine that costs 26 cents that has been available since 1963.
Dengue fever: 20 million new cases and 24,000 deaths a year from this mosquito-borne disease.
Influenza: 3-5 million new cases and 250,000 deaths a year.
Yellow fever: 200,000 new cases and 30,000 deaths a year.
SARS: About 5,400 cases and 350 deaths from severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in the first 180 days of the epidemic.
Read Also:
- Epidemiology, classical
Epidemiology, classical: The study of populations in order to determine the frequency and distribution of diseases, and then to measure the risks of those diseases.
- Epidemiologist
Epidemiologist: A person engaged in epidemiology. Epidemiologists can be people with MD, PhD, DPH (Doctor of Public Health), MPH (Master of Public Health), RN, or other degrees.
- Epidemiology, clinical
Epidemiology, clinical: Epidemiology focused specifically on patients with diseases of clinical importance.
- Epidermal
Epidermal: Pertaining to the epidermis, the outermost layer of the skin.
- Epidermis
Epidermis: The upper or outer layer of the two main layers of cells that make up the skin. The epidermis is mostly made up of flat, scale-like cells called squamous cells. Under the squamous cells are round cells called basal cells. The deepest part of the epidermis also contains melanocytes. These cells produce melanin, which […]