2. Contagious disease global epidemic dates
back for a long time, as diseases have been used
in warfare in the past. With the advancement
of medical technology many historical epidemics
have been cured. Although, Contagious disease in
Today's society is still an issue. In 2012, 20.2 million people
visited the doctors for infectious and parasitic diseases (CDC).
Today, our media has a habit of covering certain disease epidemics
that many fell are being "over-sensationalized," so there are
different opinions as to the seriousness of the epidemics. Governmental and
scientific organizations do their best to monitor disease epidemics and prevent
and stop them. In, “2008 reauthorization of PEPFAR expands the U.S. commitment to $48
billion over 5 years to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria (U.S. Department of State).
Introduction
3. Outline
Origins - Shannon & Bea
Health Organizations - Josh
Media Impact - Melissa
Vaccines - Jackie & Sabina
12. Global Disease Surveillance
- Contagious disease “cause[s] 63% of all childhood deaths and 48% of premature deaths” (“WHO
Report”).
- The CDC has discovered 30 new diseases in the past 3 decades (“CDC Responds”)
- One to two more develop each year globally, usually starting in animals (Gresham et al.)
- These diseases are hard to “diagnose… treat, and control” (Gresham et al)
- They aren’t only health issues, they also result in “legal, political, economic, and military” issues
(Espona)
- Proper surveillance and identification of known and unknown disease is required.
13. The World Health Organization (WHO)
- The WHO’s goal is to increase the global “prevention, treatment and care” of various diseases and
help countries around the world deal with problems of contagious disease (“What We Do”).
- Goal in Industrialized countries: “prevent diseases from entering and causing an outbreak or re-
emergence” (“Global Infectious”).
- Goal in Developing countries: “[detect] outbreaks early and [stop] their mortality, spread and
potential impact on trade and tourism” (“Global Infectious”)
- Information comes from both formal and informal sources, including government and academic
organizations as well as websites (“Global Infectious”)
- Informal sources make up over “60% of the initial outbreak reports” (“Epidemic Intelligence”)
14. The World Health Organization (WHO)
- WHO posts up to date information on new disease outbreaks at: http://www.who.int/csr/don/en/
- They alert the relevant public health officials (“WHO Report”) and provide teams within 24 hours to
handle the situation (“Global Infectious”)
- Not all data reported to WHO is accurate or quality data
- Many countries don’t send data to WHO out of economic concerns
- The data still can increase understanding of disease in the long-term and provide a wider picture of
its effects, including long-term mortality rates (“WHO Report”)
15. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC)
- The CDC is a government agency of the United States that fights against disease and other health
issues (“Mission”)
- A primary role is to “detect and respond” diseases by tracking and finding “the most effective ways to
prevent” it (“Mission”)
- The CDC has “conducted more than 750 field investigations” across the United States and 25
countries over the past 2 years (“Fast Facts”)
16. Connecting Organization for Regional Disease Surveillance (CORDS)
- CORDS is “an international non-governmental organization” that endeavors “to link regional disease
surveillance networks to improve global capacity to respond to infectious diseases” (Gresham et al)
- The CORDS global network is based on trust, linking “public and private sector” groups to work
towards a common goal: “improving infectious disease surveillance capacity” (Gresham et al)
- WHO’s assistance is limited by the organization’s “vertical and geopolitical structure” and “outdated
geopolitical boundaries,” slowing down the information sharing process (Gresham et al)
- CORDS creates more effective communication among various informal health organizations in
neighboring countries and around the world (Gresham et al)
- CORDS seeks to be a complementary organization to WHO (Gresham et al)
17. Concerns from Maria Jose Espona
- Espona believes that not all information in disease surveillance databases is “good” information and
“often contains discrepancies”
- “Inaccurate statistics” detract from health defense
- Surveillance of contagious disease must be improved
- Suggestions:
- Health Organizations and Military Organizations focused on disease must work together on
mutually relevant topics in order to decrease “data discrepancies”
- The education of health workers must improve, suggest through WHO mandated programs
and monitoring of job performance
18. How the Media Reports on Contagious
Disease Epidemics
Having the media post information about contagious diseases can help prevent
spreading and warn those to be more cautious.
These are some ways the media might reach us…
• Facebook
• News (Ex: CNN)
• Twitter
• Snapchat
• web forums
19. “Social media provide an additional informal source of data that can be used to identify health information
not reported to medical officials or health departments and to reveal viewpoints on health-related topics,
especially of a sensitive nature” (Nsoesie).
March 01, 2014
20.
21. Exaggerations on the Media About Diseases
-When it comes to some researchers they watch and learn from what is on the internet and see “who is
getting sick, where they are getting sick, when and how they are getting sick. When it comes to using
social media for monitoring the flu, the aim is typically to estimate current flu trends before agencies like
the CDC release their official reports” (Nsoesie).
- other ways researchers such as Elaine Nsoesie get their information is be sweeping through what people
tweet and where they are located. That may sound creepy but how else do people get their information.
There is always that one person who finds the internet amusing. So why not ? The internet is full of
information that people trust or don’t trust. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to know if it’s true or just
being "over-sensationalized".
- the media is full of over exaggerated topics or making them seem more than what is is or better. Even
the news can change its perspective on a story from what it originally was by leaving out crucial data or
intel.
Ex: The Trayvon Martin case they said that the police officer shot him but what the public really didn’t
know was that Trayvon Martin went for is gun. Whether or not it is true is hard to tell.
22. Can social media be integrated into disease surveillance
practice?
Yes. Why? This is because it can provide health information that is not reported to
medical official or health departments to view the health related topics on what is
out there and what is going on at the time.
For younger people the internet is where you will reach more intel on what is going
on instead of face to face connections. It is a faster way to get information when
you are not near people who are dealing with certain situations.
Such as in the movie “Outbreak” this shows you how there are connections
through the media when epidemics happen in certain areas of the world.
http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi547029273
23. How Diseases Impacts Public Perception
-Not only is it scary to view these different illnesses but it is scary to have it as well.
-People try their best to not get sick.
-Others are preparing for the worst, such as stocking up on medical supplies.
-It makes other worry more about how it is adapting and where its is coming from.
-Schools and other know places are working very hard on sanitary environments.
-Society only wants to stop others from spreading any diseases or sicknesses. They even
come up with a way to stop it from happening by using the “Breaking News Consumers
Handbook”.
24.
25. Contagious Disease and Vaccinations
Vaccines have prevented disease and death since they were introduced into modern medicine. Yet, some
parents choose not to immunize their children with vaccines.
Many argue that individuals should be able to freely exercise their actions on whether or not to get
immunized, others argue that the health of the general public is put at risk with outbreaks of easily
preventable disease.
26. -Ohio and surrounding areas having 341 cases of measles
-Netherlands, an orthodox Protestant minority of about 250,000 members has religious objections to
vaccination.
-Polio epidemic of 1978.
Examples
27. Conclusion
In conclusion, contagious disease can be spread by germs, feces, mouth, through
air, skin to skin, blood, food and water, Etc. Prevention of contagious diseases is
crucial. Always remember to wash your hand and cover your mouth when you
sneeze or cough. When outdoors, use insect repellent. Also, if it applies, stay up
to date on vaccinations, especially when traveling. Not only does media report the
situations about disease but they show you how to handle it and help take care of
yourselves. Always listen to the News and keep up to date with others to help
survive any type of contagious diseases or even help others.
28. Origins - Works Cited
"A History of Anthrax." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 01 Sept.
2015. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.
"About Ebola Virus Disease." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services,
18 Feb. 2016. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.
"Cholera Epidemics in the 19th Century." Contagion, Historical Views of Diseases of Epidemics. Harvard University Library,
n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2016.
"Deadly Diseases: Epidemics throughout History." CNN. Cable News Network, n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2016.
“Dengue.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 19 Jan. 2016. Web.
25 Mar. 2016.
“How is rabies transmitted?” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 22
Apr. 2011. Web. 25 Mar. 2016.
"History of Smallpox." History of Vaccines RSS. The College of Physicians of Philadelphia, n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2016.
29. Origins - Works Cited
"Infectious and Chronic Disease." U.S. Department of State. U.S. Department of State, n.d. Web. 26 Mar. 2016.
“West Nile Virus.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 12 Feb.
2015. Web. 25 Mar. 2016.
"Yellow Fever." History of Vaccines RSS. The College of Physicians of Philadelphia, n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2016.
Cox, Francis EG. "History of the Discovery of the Malaria Parasites and Their Vectors." Parasites & Vectors. BioMed
Central, 01 Feb. 2010. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.
Wolfe, Nathan D., Claire Panosian Dunavan, and Jared Diamond. ORIGINS OF MAJOR HUMAN INFECTIOUS
DISEASES33. U.S. National Library of Medicine. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.
30. Disease Surveillance - Works Cited
"CDC Responds to Disease Outbreaks 24-7." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, 19 Mar. 2014. Web. 01 Apr. 2016. <http://www.cdc.gov/about/facts/cdcfastfacts/diseaseresponse.html>.
"Epidemic Intelligence - Systematic Event Detection." World Health Organization. World Health Organization, n.d. Web. 01
Apr. 2016. <http://www.who.int/csr/alertresponse/epidemicintelligence/en/>.
Espona, Maria José. "Winning The Battle Against Emerging Pathogens." Bulletin Of The Atomic Scientists 70.4 (2014): 18-
21. Academic Search Premier. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.
"Fast Facts about CDC." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 19 Feb.
2016. Web. 01 Apr. 2016. <http://www.cdc.gov/about/facts/cdcfastfacts/cdcfacts.html>.
"Global Infectious Disease Surveillance." World Health Organization. World Health Organization, n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2016.
<http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs200/en/>.
Gresham, Louise S., et al. "Creating A Global Dialogue On Infectious Disease Surveillance: Connecting Organizations For
Regional Disease Surveillance (CORDS)." Emerging Health Threats 6.(2013): 1-7. Academic Search Premier. Web. 27
Mar. 2016.
"Mission, Role and Pledge." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 14
Apr. 2014. Web. 01 Apr. 2016. <http://www.cdc.gov/about/organization/mission.htm>.
"What We Do." World Health Organization. World Health Organization, n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2016.
<http://www.who.int/about/what-we-do/en/>.
"WHO Report on Global Surveillance of Epidemic-prone Infectious Diseases - Introduction." World Health Organization.
WHO, n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2016. <http://www.who.int/csr/resources/publications/introduction/en/>.
31. Vaccination - Works Cited
“The Debate Over Vaccinations In Schools." Penn Bioethics Journal 10.1 (2014): 10. Academic Search Premier. Web. 18
Mar. 2016.
M. Ruijs, Wilhelmina L., et al. "How Healthcare Professionals Respond To Parents With Religious Objections To
Vaccination: A Qualitative Study." BMC Health Services Research 12.1 (2012): 231-239. Academic Search Premier. Web.
18 Mar. 2016.
Ulrich, Michael R. "Guidance From Vaccination Jurisprudence." American Journal Of Bioethics 13.9 (2013): 40-42.
Academic Search Premier. Web. 18 Mar. 2016.
WALSH, MARK. "Appeals Court Upholds N.Y. Vaccination Rules." Education Week 34.17 (2015): 4. Academic Search
Premier. Web. 18 Mar. 2016.
Cox, Elaine, Dr. "The Importance of Vaccinations in Preventing Diseases | Riley Hospital for Children at IU Health."
Youtube. IUHealth, 25 Mar. 2013. Web. 2 Apr. 2016.
32. Media - Citations
-Charles-Smith, Lauren E. "Using Social Media for Actionable Disease Surveillance and Outbreak
Management: A Systematic Literature Review." PLOS ONE:. PLOS ONE:, 5 Oct. 2015. Web. 01 Apr. 2016.
<http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0139701#abstract0>.
-Nsoesie, Elaine. "Digital Disease Detection: Using Social Media To Predict Flu Trends | HealthMap." Digital
Disease Detection: Using Social Media To Predict Flu Trends | HealthMap. Healthmap.org, 11
Mar. 2014. Web. 01 Apr. 2016.
<http://www.healthmap.org/site/diseasedaily/article/digital-disease-detection-using-social-media-predict-flu-trends-
31114>.
-Gutman, Matt, and Seni Tienabeso. "Trayvon Martin Shooter Told Cops Teenager Went For His Gun." ABC
News. ABC News Network, n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2016.
<http://abcnews.go.com/US/trayvon-martin-shooter-teenager-gun/story?id=16000239>.
-Kamradt-Scott, Adam. "Changing Perceptions: Of Pandemic Influenza and Public Health Responses."
American Journal of Public Health. American Public Health Association, Jan. 2012. Web. 01 Apr.
2016. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3490545/>.
-Gladstone, Brooke, and Bob Garfield. "Breaking News Consumer's Handbook: Infectious Disease Edition."
WNYC. ON THE MEDIA, 24 Oct. 2014. Web. 01 Apr. 2016. <http://www.wnyc.org/story/breakingnews-
consumers-handbook-infectious-disease-edition/>.
Editor's Notes
To begin with, we will be defining a few terms that we will use in the presentation. An infectious disease is caused by microorganisms that either release toxins or invade the tissue, causing bodily harm. The cause of these diseases are either a bacterium or virus referred to as a pathogen. These pathogens can live in an animal or human. A host organism harbors these pathogens, which allows it to be transmitted. An endemic is a disease that is regularly found among a particular group in a certain area, whereas an epidemic is a widespread occurrence of an infectious disease in a community at a particular time. Basically, they differ in how large the spread of disease is.
According to Wolfe, Dunavon and Diamond, there are five stages that lead to human infectious diseases.
During Stage 1, a microbe is present in animals, usually just one host species such as a mosquito, but has not come to contact with humans under normal conditions (Wolfe, et. al). Malarial Plasmodia – Commonly found in birds, mammals, and reptiles. This disease is transmitted from infected mosquitos. First recognized in 1899 but they weren’t identified until 1907 (Cox).
During Stage 2, a pathogen undergoes a primary infection from animal to human, but not a secondary infection transmitted between humans. This is the first stage where humans are infected. Examples of diseases that are transmitted during this stage are anthrax, rabies and the West Nile virus (Wolfe, et. al).
Anthrax is thought to have originated in Egypt and Mesopotamia in 1250 B.C. It’s transmitted by touching or breathing in contaminated animal products like wool, bone, and hair. In 1881, scientist Louis Pasteur came up with the first vaccine for anthrax in animals. The first vaccine for humans didn’t come until 1950. There were big anthrax outbreaks everywhere from Russia to the United States throughout history.
Rabies infects the central nervous system, ultimately causing disease in the brain and death. It is transmitted when infected saliva of a host is passed to an uninfected animal. The most common mode of rabies virus transmission is through the bite and virus-containing saliva of an infected host.
West Nile virus was first detected in North America in 1999 and is most commonly transmitted to humans by mosquitoes. There have been documented cases where it was transmitted through blood transfusion, organ transplants, exposure in a laboratory setting and through childbirth or breastfeeding. Fevers and other symptoms appear in about 20% of infected people, but less than 1% of infected people develop a serious, sometimes fatal, neurologic illness.
In Stage 3, secondary infection cycles where human outbreaks from primary infections soon die out. An example of this is ebola (Wolfe, et. al). The first outbreak of Ebola was in Zaire, Africa in 1976. The disease is spread by close personal contact and the use of contaminated needles and syringes. All of the ebola cases have occurred in Africa but there was a lab contamination in England in 1976 and Russia in 1996.
During Stage 4, the disease starts with animals, but has varying lengths of secondary infections in humans. It is broken up into 3 different subgroups. The first has the sylvatic (wild animal pathogen) cycle is more important. An example of this is yellow fever. There is no cure for it, but there is a vaccine that is given to people in areas where there are endemics. In 1648, because there were so many cases of yellow fever epidemics in the West Indies, Boston, Massachusetts had a quarantine for all the ships coming over. The first confirmed outbreaks happened in 1699 in Charleston and Philadelphia.
b. Both sylvatic and direct transmission are important. Ex: dengue fever
c. Greatest spread is between humans. Ex: cholera
(Wolfe, et. al)
Dengue
Dengue fever first became a worldwide problem in the 1950s and like the West Nile virus, it is transmitted by mosquitoes. It is the leading cause of illness and death in the tropics and subtropics as almost 400 million people are infected annually. Dengue causes a high fever and severe headaches, severe eye pain, joint/muscle pain, a rash and vomiting.
Cholera – First appeared in Europe and North America in 1831. It’s believed that it came from India and was brought to the United States by European travelers. Cases have occurred all over the world throughout history. There have been a number of theories for how people get cholera but the final conclusion was that the disease travels through contaminated drinking water. By the end of the 1800’s, there were no more epidemics in Europe and North America and no one knows why.
Stage 5 – Pathogen exclusive to humans that could be remnants of ancestral pathogen that existed in our common ape ancestors or a pathogen that evolved from the initial primary infection into a human pathogen. An example of this is smallpox (Wolfe, et. al).
Smallpox – It’s probably the most frequently occurring epidemic throughout history. The first case was in 430 B.C. in Athens Greece. It killed more than 30,000 people reducing the city’s population by at least 20%. It’s caused by a virus that spreads through skin to skin contact or contact with bodily fluids. Smallpox is one of the deadliest diseases for humans but the only disease that can be cured by a vaccination. Estimates say that 20th-century worldwide deaths from smallpox numbered more than 300 million people.
It was believed in the 1970s that “the fight against infectious diseases was over,” but the concern has increased in the past two decades. Contagious disease still “cause[s] 63% of all childhood deaths and 48% of premature deaths” today. The World Health Organization states that subsequently public health surveillance and identification of known and unknown disease is required (“WHO Report”).
The CDC has discovered 30 new diseases in the past 3 decades (“CDC Responds”), and up to two more develop every year globally, most starting in animals. The rapid travel of the modern age increases exposure and the possibility of infection. These diseases may be be hard to “diagnose… treat, and control” (Gresham et. al).
Disease outbreaks also create “legal, political, economic, and military” issues. Proper surveillance, including “gathering information about current and past prevalence of diseases in specific countries” is required (Espona).
WHO endeavors to increase the global “prevention, treatment and care” of various diseases. In emergency situations they “lead and coordinat[e] the health response… undertak[e] risk assessments, identify priorities and set strategies, provid[e] critical technical guidance, supplies and financial resources as well as monitor the health situation.” They also aid countries in creating strong risk management plans (“What We Do”).
WHO’s goal in “industrialized countries” is to “prevent diseases from entering and causing an outbreak or re-emergence,” and to “[detect] outbreaks early and [stop] their mortality, spread and potential impact on trade and tourism” in “developing countries” through developing strong disease surveillance systems. WHO developed “network of networks” that links various networks around the world “into a super surveillance network.” Information comes from both formal and informal sources, including government and academic organizations as well as websites that aim to increase “public awareness on public health issues” (“Global Infectious”). Non-official, informal sources make up over “60% of the initial outbreak reports” and may require verification (“Epidemic Intelligence”).
When there’s an outbreak of contagious disease, WHO posts information about it on the internet (located at http://www.who.int/csr/don/en/ (Links to an external site.)), “alert[s] health officials” (“WHO Report”), and will have a team “on site within 24 hour of outbreak confirmation” to assess and control the situation and prepare for a larger team if needed (“Global Infectious”). WHO data can increase understanding of diseases in the long-term. Unfortunately, not all countries report data to WHO out of economic concerns, and not all data is of the same quality, but the data is useful for providing a global picture of “epidemic infectious disease” as well as long-term mortality rates (“WHO Report”).
The CDC is a U.S. government agency that works to fight against disease and other health issues. A primary listed role is to “detect and respond” to new “health threats,” involving tracking and finding “the most effective ways to prevent” disease (“Mission”). The CDC has “conducted more than 750 field investigations” across the U.S. and 35 countries over the past 2 years, investigating issues of health and disease (“Fast Facts”).
The organization “Connecting Organization for Regional Disease Surveillance,” or CORDS, is “an international non-governmental organization” that endeavors “to link regional disease surveillance networks to improve global capacity to respond to infectious diseases.” They work with governmental organizations such as “the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), and the Food and Animal Organization of the United Nations (FAO).” The CORDS global network is based on trust, linking “public and private sector” groups to work towards a common goal: “improving infectious disease surveillance capacity” (Gresham et. al).
Gresham et al. believes that WHO’s assistance is limited by the organization’s “vertical and geopolitical structure” and “outdated geopolitical boundaries,” slowing down the information sharing process. CORDS serves to create more effective communication among various informal health organizations in neighboring countries and around the world, while still being in contact with WHO. CORDS seeks to be a complementary service to WHO and aid them in the overall fight against contagious disease in both surveillance and prevention (Gresham et. al).
Maria Jose Espona believes that not all information in official health databases is “good information,” “often contains discrepancies,” which is “troubling.” As an example, she mentions when Paraguay wasn’t reporting cases of dengue fever when the surrounding countries were, due to delayed updates. Espona states that “[i]naccurate statistics” detract from health defense and that the surveillance of contagious disease must be improved (Espona 18-9).
Espona suggests that, in order to improve “disease surveillance,” two things have to happen: the groups that fight against diseases from the health perspective need to work with the groups that come from the military perspective (and vice versa) on the diseases that are relevant to both perspectives in order to decrease “data discrepancies”; and the education of health workers need to improve so that they know how to do their job. Espona suggest that the WHO develops proper educational programs, and monitor the performance of health workers (Espona 19-20).
-Some point to Ohio and surrounding areas where over 341 cases of measles have been reported that resulted from the lack of vaccinations in an Amish population. Since the outbreak, a majority of the Amish have reconsidered their decision to refuse vaccines (Tribble 2014).
-In The Netherlands, an orthodox Protestant minority of about 250,000 members has religious objections to vaccination. Forty percent of them have been found to not be vaccinated at all. Epidemics of polio, measles, rubella, and mumps have broken out among this group and in turn has spread to relatives in Canada.
-During the polio epidemic of 1978, Veenman and Jansma identified among orthodox Protestants religious objections, family tradition, and fear of possible side- effects as major reasons for not being vaccinated.
