Communicable Diseases

What they are, how to prevent them, and common communicable diseases

What are Communicable Diseases?

Communicable Disease: A disease that is spread from one living thing to another or
through the environment.
Pathogen: An organism that causes disease.
Infection: A condition that occurs when pathogens enter the body, multiply, and
damage body cells.
Can infection lead to disease?

Virus: pieces of genetic material surrounded by a protein coat.

Can a virus be a pathogen?

Examples

Ebola is an example of a virus that causes infection, and eventual disease in a victim.
Some viruses are more common, like influenza, than ebola.
Vaccine: a preparation of dead or weakened pathogens that are introduced into the
body to stimulate an immune response.

How Pathogens Are Spread

Direct contact touching, biting, sneezing, coughing, puncture of skin barrier, sexual
contact.
Indirect contact contaminated objects, vectors (such as a tick), water and food.
Airborne sneeze or cough propelling pathogen in the air

Preventing the Spread of Disease

Wash your hands!
Handle food properly
Be aware of vectors in outdoor settings
Eat a balanced diet
Avoid sharing utensils
Take care of yourself
Avoid unnecessary contact
Get vaccinated
Manage Stress

Preventing the Spread of Disease

Immune system: network of cells, tissues, organs, and chemicals that fight off
pathogens.
Inflammatory response: reactions to tissue damage caused by injury or infection
Example: splinter

Specific defense: Immune response; recognizing and destroying pathogens

Keep your immune system at prime condition by staying healthy.
Vaccinations can help benefit your immune system. How?

Common Communicable Diseases

The most common communicable diseases are those of what system?

Common Cold: viral infection that causes inflammation of the mucous membranes that
line the nose and throat.
Most commonly spread through hand to hand contact, then contact with ones face.

Influenza: viral infection of respiratory tract.

Most commonly spread through airborne transmission
Can lead to pneumonia: an infection of the lungs in which air sacs fill with pus and other liquid
Pneumonia is one of the top ten causes of death in the US

Common Communicable Diseases

Strep Throat: a bacterial infection
spread by direct contact
Tuberculosis: a bacterial disease
that usually attacks the lungs

Common Communicable Diseases

Hepatitis: Inflammation of the liver and can be caused by chemicals, including durgs or
alcohol, or by pathogens.
Jaundice Yellowing of the skin and eyes
A One of the top ten communicable diseases, spread through feces
B More serious than A, spread usually from blood and can cause serious liver issues
C Most common chronic blood-borne infection in the US and can lead to liver disease,
cancer, and/or failure.

Lecture Assignment

Answer the questions on the following sheet that will now be passed out to the class. It
will be due by the beginning of tomorrows class period.
After finishing the assignment, continue onto Chapter 25