Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Blog Summary
With the help of the five themes of "pathography", I was successful in my attempt to find diseases in every continent of the world. Through my research, I found that a majority of the world's diseases are found in Third world countries. These diseases are generally insect-borne and highly contagious. Third world countries lack the health care needed to keep these diseases under control. Take malaria for example, back in the 80s there was an epidemic affecting most of the Australian continent, today there are maybe 70 to 80 cases per year. Most of Australia is considered to be First world, they have the medical treatment available if needed. Northern Africa on the other hand does not. They alone have a third of the world's malaria cases. Human environment interaction also plays a role in new diseases surfacing every couple of years or so.
Chogas is a Latin American disease that came about soon after people began the process of deforestation in order to start the development process. A prime example of how human environment interaction brings about new disease. With globalization on the rise, infection carrying insects and diseases native to particular regions of the world are showing up everywhere. Through my research, I found that Lyme disease is not only found in the U.S. it is also found in Europe. What's more interesting, scientist now believe that the disease originated over there.
Though many diseases are insect-borne, we can also find it in our blood and in the food we eat. Disease is everywhere and has always been. All we can do is use the technology and medication available to use to combat these ever changing menace to society.
Chogas is a Latin American disease that came about soon after people began the process of deforestation in order to start the development process. A prime example of how human environment interaction brings about new disease. With globalization on the rise, infection carrying insects and diseases native to particular regions of the world are showing up everywhere. Through my research, I found that Lyme disease is not only found in the U.S. it is also found in Europe. What's more interesting, scientist now believe that the disease originated over there.
Though many diseases are insect-borne, we can also find it in our blood and in the food we eat. Disease is everywhere and has always been. All we can do is use the technology and medication available to use to combat these ever changing menace to society.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Aids in The United States
"Acquired immune deficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus. (HIV)." (avert.org) It is believed that since the start of the Aids epidemic, the U.S. alone has experienced well over half a million deaths from the disease. The disease can be transmitted through sexual contact and or blood. The way the virus works is, over time the HIV virus gradually attacks the immune system cells. This causes one to become vulnerable to infections, leaving the infected open to illness during the duration of the disease. Some symptoms include, fever, swollen lymph nodes, diarrhea (lasting longer that one week), and weightloss. When the HIV virus matures, it becomes full blown Aids. This process can take years. Ultimately the infected subject will die.
Work Cited
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Campylobacteriosis in New Zealand
"Campylobacteriosis is an infectious disease caused by the complyobacter bacterium, most commonly C. Jenjuni. It is amoung the most common bacterial infections of humans, often a foodborne illness." (cfsph.iastate.edu) New Zealand has the world's highest rate of the infection. The infection is transmitted when one comes in contact and or eats raw meat. Though the disease is commonly within the body & feces of farm animals, though rare, house hold animals can also surcome to the illness. The disease is not fatal, but if left untreated one could experience discomfort for the duration of disease, which generally last 5-10 days. Some symptoms include, diarrhea (bloody), nausea, fever, and tiredness. The disease will eventually subside, it the case that it doesn't, antibotics can be used to help rid the body of the bacteria.
Work Cited
Malaria in Australia
"Malaria is a mosquito-bourne disease caused by a parasite." (cdc.gov/malaria)Malaria is one of the most devastating diseases known to man. When infected, the parasite infects health red blood cells turning them into sticky sacks with new parasites within each of them. These sacks stick to the walls of blood vessels and begans to release the parasites onto other red blood cells that passby. Some symptoms one may show after being infected with the disease are headaches, nausea, fever, and flu-like symptoms. It is imperative that the infected gets treatment for the disease as soon as symptoms began to show after a mosquito bite, otherwise the infected will eventually die. Australia being a first world country, is able to keep the disease at bay with the health care that's available to its people, where as third world countries such as northern Africa cannot. There are an estimated 3 million cases of malaria worldwide, 1 million of which are located in the Sub-Saharan in Africa. A prime example of why health care is such an important topic in the world we live today Even with treatment, there are 700-800 deaths that occur each year in Australia.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
South & Western Africa's River Blindness Disease (Onchocerciasis)
"Onchocerciasis is a parasitic disease caused by the filorial worm, Onchocerca Volvulus." (apps.who.int) This disease is transmitted through the bite of an infected black fly. These flies carry the larval form of the disease, once bitten the parasite enters the body and forms nodules in the subcutaneous tissues where they began their growth process in to adult worms. "After mating, the female adult worm can release up to 1000 microfiloria a day." (app.who.int) As these microfliloria move through the body, their deaths are what causes the conditions in which the infected suffer from. These conditions include blindness, skin rashes, lesions, intense itching, and skin depigmentation. The only way to prevent oncherciasis is to destroy the source of the problem. Many measures are being taken, such as, spraying the blackflies breading sites with insecticide and treating the sick as early as possible.
Work Cited
Monday, October 11, 2010
African Sleeping Disease
"African sleeping sickness is an often fatal, endemic infectious disease of humans and animals in tropical Africa, caused by either of two trypanosanes transmitted by the tsetse fly and characterized by fever, severe headaches, and lymph nodes swelling in early stages, followed by extreme weakness, sleepiness, and deep coma" (Answers.com) There are two types of the disease that occurs in different regions in Africa. the first is the Rodesian form, here the parasite enters the lymph nodes and spleen. Soon after the infected has symptoms such as an irregular fever and delayed pain sensation. "The patient soon dies of massive toxemia" (Answers.com) The Gambian type is the parasite that attacks the brain and spinal cord. This is what causes symptoms such as severe headaches, mental and physical fatigue and sleepiness. After about 3 years of so, the suffering ends and the infected first experiences a deep coma...then death. It is believed that 50 to 70 thousand people are currently infected.
Work Cited
Work Cited
Lesihmanisasis
"Leishmanisasis is a parasitic disease transmitted by the bite of sand flies" (Answers.com) The disease can now be found in 88 countries including the Middle East. It is believed that 350 million people are infected worldwide and it is expected to grow at a rate of 1.5 to 2 million cases per year. The disease first starts in animals such as dogs, rodents, and sloths. " When a sand fly takes blood from an infected mammal, it will ingest leishmania parasites called amastigote along with the blood" (Answers.com) The transformation process begins shortly after. Over seven days, the leishmanisasis develops within the sand fly and becomes infectious. When the sand fly goes to drink the blood of another mammal, that is when the leishmanisaisi is transmitted and infects the new host. Similar to how mosquito's infect people with the West Nile virus. Once infected there are three possible ways the disease can be transmitted. Through blood transfusions, shared needles, and skin to skin contact if the infected area in open. This disease can be fatal if left untreated.
Work Cited
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