Some diseases are caused by infection. Infection is when another organism gets into your body and causes harm. There are many kinds of infectious agents: viruses, bacteria, parasites, and fungus. These four kinds of infectious agents cause most infectious disease. There are other kinds though. For example mad cow disease (Bovine spongiform encephalopathy) is caused by prions. We are not even sure that prions are alive. But they act just like other infectious diseases.

Common infectious diseases

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Diseases caused by bacteria

• Tuberculosis - also called TB.
• Bubonic plague
• Pertussis - also called whooping cough

Diseases caused by viruses

• AIDS/HIV
• Hepatitis B
• Polio
• Colds
• Influenza - also called the flu.

Diseases caused by fungus

• Thrush
• Ringworm

Diseases caused by parasites

• Malaria
• Schistosomiasis (flat worms)
• Chagas disease

Diseases caused by many infectious agents

Some infections are caused by different infectious agents at different times. For example, some diarrhea is caused by bacteria. Some is caused by viruses.

• Diarrhea
• Pneumonia
• Meningitis

This is a very short list. There are many more diseases from infection and other causes: common diseases.

Getting infectious disease

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Some diseases can be passed from one person to another easily. Other infectious diseases are harder to get. If you kiss or touch a person who is infected with the flu, a cold, measles, or a sore throat, you may get their disease. They may also give you their disease if they cough on you. Other diseases like AIDS, herpes, and hepatitis B, are only passed by closer contact. Having sex with an infected person, blood transfusions, or touching their blood or urine can sometimes pass these diseases.

Stopping infectious disease

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You can stop disease by:

• Hand washing
• Covering your mouth every time you cough
• Only drinking clean water
• Only eating very cooked meat
• Using a condom or rubber every time you have sex

Treating infectious disease

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Bacteria are usually treated with antibiotic medicines like Tetracycline and Penicillin. Viruses will not be killed by antibiotics. They must be treated with special medicines called antivirals. Medicines to treat HIV/AIDS like zidovudine are antivirals. Antifungals like miconazole and fluconazole treat infections from fungus. Anti-parasitic medicines like Praziquantel and mebendazole.

Some infectious diseases have no treatments that work well. For example, there is no medicine that works well to cure West Nile Virus and Rabies. So it is important to avoid getting these diseases.

Some infectious disease goes away on its own. These mild diseases do not need to be treated. For example colds are caused by viruses and they do not need medicines.

Some diseases can be prevented by immunizations. Immunizations try to make a person have an immune reaction to an infectious agent. This is usually done before the person gets the disease. Examples of diseases prevented by immunizations are: polio, tetanus, and pertussis. In some cases, if all of the disease can be removed from society, we can get rid of the disease completely. An example of this is smallpox. This virus used to kill people, cause blindness, and bad scars. Now there has not been a person who had smallpox in over thirty years.

Other Websites

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• World Health Organization Report on Infectious Disease - 2002

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