"Communicable Disease" ugly things you get from travelling if you do not take precautions. Unexpected things are part of the whole travelling experience. This blog will talk about the meaning of infectious diseases and two of the most popular communicable diseases you can get from travelling. In particular Hepatitis and Malaria.
Communicable Disease also known as Infectious disease is transmitted through direct or indirect contact from one person to another or with an animal carrying the disease. Infectious disease comes in different types of illnesses and is known worldwide for it causes a lot of deaths yearly. Statistics shows that the rate of incidence of infectious diseases in Canada varies, depending on what disease. Public Health Agency of Canada has a website containing charts of different communicable diseases from 1989-2004.
Hepatitis is the swelling of the liver that makes it stop doing its work. It is a viral infection transmitted by direct contact with the person with the disease. The most obvious symptom of a person who is infected with Hepatitis has yellow skin and eyes which is medically termed as jaundice. The three known types of hepatitis are Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C. The types of hepatitis varies form the virus that causes it.
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| PHOTO: Courtesy of CDC. Website: Mshale The African Community Newspaper |
Hepatitis A is spread through food and water contaminated by the stool of an infected person. An example is when the person affected with the disease doesn't wash his hands after using the bathroom and prepares food for another person. Another is through drinking contaminated water. Sometimes people who go in rural places doesn't get that much chance to check whether the food or water is clean or contaminated.
Hepatits B is spread through contact with an infected person's blood, semen or other body fluids. It can be acute where it shows no symptoms at all and gets better on its own time or it can be chronic which is there for a lifetime and could cause liver cancer. An example is using a nail cutter on the salon or spa without disinfecting it. The nail cutter might be contaminated by a person infected with hepatitis B who used it before you.
Hepatitis C is somehow similar to hepatitis B. The only difference between them are Hepatitis C can be spread from the mother to her baby during childbirth and it is a chronic form of hepatitis. It could lead to liver cancer and might require a liver transplant.
Vaccinations are important to prevent people from acquiring the different types of Hepatitis along with being careful in everything that you are doing. Though the vaccinations are only available for Hepa A and Hepa B, article says that researchers are working on finding a vaccine for Hepa C.
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