UNIT 12-DISEASES AND INFECTION
Learning aim C: Understand how infectious diseases can be treated and
managed.
INTRODUCTION
Infectious diseases also known as communicable disease are caused by pathogens which are
microorganisms that can be easily spread either through indirect contact or direct contact
from one person to another. Examples of different types of pathogens are virus, bacteria
fungi, parasites and protozoa.
A bacteria is a single celled living organism that when divided produces toxins that can harm
the human body. However, some bacteria can be harmless such as those found in yogurt
and cheese. Cholera is bacterial infection of the intestine caused by a toxin in the
bacteria ‘vibrio cholerae’. The disease is transmitted via indirect contact so through
contaminated water or food from an infected persons feces. The bacteria have also been
found in seafood, raw fruits and vegetables as well as grain. If left untreated, it can cause
severe watery diarrhea, which can lead to dehydration or death.
A virus is an infected microorganism that causes deadly disease it is very small, have a
regular shape, when it enters the body, it affects the cell by causing damage and destroying
the cell. An example of viral disease is hepatises. Hepatesis is liver inflammation caused by a
viral infection or liver damage caused by excessive alcohol consumption. Hepatesis can be
spread through direct contact via infected blood, body fluids and personal contact with the
infected person.
Parasites are organisms that live in or on the host. When they enter the human body, they
can cause cell damage. Toxoplasmosis is an example of parasite disease. Toxoplasmosis is an
infectious disease caused by an infection with the toxoplasma gondii parasite. It can occur
as a result of eating undercooked contaminated meat, being expose to infected cat faces or
a mother transmitting to her baby during her pregnancy. When a person has a disease, they
may or may not have symptoms. The symptoms on the other hand are fever, fatigue,
headache and body aches. Toxoplasmosis patients do not require a treatment because they
recover on their own, but they can be treated with pyrimethamine, sulfadiazine and folic
acid drugs.
Protists are organisms which are not found in animals, plant, fungi or bacteria. They are
carried between hosts primarily in the small intestine and rely on vectors. This prevents the
host from absorbing all of the nutrients it requires. An example of protist disease is malaria.
Malaria can be a fatal disease which is caused and can be spread by an infected mosquito
biting a person. It is caused by a single celled parasites called ‘plasmodium’. The mosquito
injects parasites into the bloodstream, they can travel to cells, multiply the disease then
destroy the cell. The symptoms of it are fever, vomiting, sweats and anaemia. Malaria can
be treated by using anti-malaria tablets which kills the protist inside the body. Another
treatment can be vaccination which needs to be done when you are child.
, Fungi is a eukaryotic cell, unicellular or multicellular organisms which is mainly found on the
soil or plant material. An example of a fungal disease if ringworm. Ringworm is caused by a
fungal disease where later there is a rash anywhere on the body. It can be spread through
direct or indirect contact. A person or an animal can be infected from it as a result if another
person comes into contact with an infected person or animal, they will catch the disease.
However, it can also be spread through indirect contact when a person touches infected
objects such as bedsheets or towels. Ringworm can also be found on surfaces such as damp
areas.
People are most likely to get infectious disease in certain
countries due to poor sanitation, a lack of clean water,
poverty, a lack of vaccination, a lack of doctors and crowded
living condition as many people live in the same house in poor
condition where everyone is cramped together. Another
reason is due to poor environmental factors such as a clean
water, crowded houses and due to lack availability of health
services. Nutrition and lifestyle play an important role in the
development of infectious diseases because people are
unable to have an effective diet due to a lack of financial
Figure 1
resources resulting in a lack of all the nutrients, they
require such as vitamins, proteins.
There are several factors for why countries develop certain disease which can be seen in
figure 1 and why the level of mortality rate increases. For instance, diet, exercise, clean
water, quality of healthcare are the factors that impacts it. Since 2015-2020 Bulgaria has the
highest mortality rate amongst the world at 15.4% per 1,000 people. The reasons of the
death are due to non-communicable diseases such as respiratory, circulatory, digestive and
cancer. Ukraine has a death rate of 15.2% as healthcare service are not correctly financed,
poor vaccination rates. Furthermore, in Ukraine HIV/AIDS infectious has quickly spread and
in 2019 there was a measles pandemic. The thirds highest country with high mortality rate is
Latvia which is 14.6% per 1,000 people likewise with Ukraine their healthcare system is
poorly funded and other factors include smoking, drinking alcohol over the limit and
obesity. Lesotho has a death rate of 14.3% and is due to HIV/AIDS spreading leading to
deaths, tuberculosis, stroke, respiratory infections and ischemic heart disease. Lithuania
mortality rate are due to smoking and lung cancer causing 13,7% deaths per 1,000 people.
METHODS USE TO TREAT INFECTIOUS DISEASE:
Throughout the years medicine has advanced and developed ways in which we can treat
infectious disease such as vaccine, antimicrobial treatments, anthelmintic, immunoglobin
and rehydration therapies. A vaccine is used to treat viruses to prevent people from
catching an infectious disease. A doctor or nurse will be injecting a vaccine that contains a
small amount of the dead or weakened strain of the infectious disease then the human
body will produce antibodies to fight the disease which later create your body to be immune
to the disease as there will already be antibodies to fight the disease. Examples which
vaccination is used to treat is measles, influenza, smallpox, cholera and hepatitis.
Throughout the year vaccination has been proven to an effective way to prevent catching an
infectious disease in children from 85% to 95%.
Learning aim C: Understand how infectious diseases can be treated and
managed.
INTRODUCTION
Infectious diseases also known as communicable disease are caused by pathogens which are
microorganisms that can be easily spread either through indirect contact or direct contact
from one person to another. Examples of different types of pathogens are virus, bacteria
fungi, parasites and protozoa.
A bacteria is a single celled living organism that when divided produces toxins that can harm
the human body. However, some bacteria can be harmless such as those found in yogurt
and cheese. Cholera is bacterial infection of the intestine caused by a toxin in the
bacteria ‘vibrio cholerae’. The disease is transmitted via indirect contact so through
contaminated water or food from an infected persons feces. The bacteria have also been
found in seafood, raw fruits and vegetables as well as grain. If left untreated, it can cause
severe watery diarrhea, which can lead to dehydration or death.
A virus is an infected microorganism that causes deadly disease it is very small, have a
regular shape, when it enters the body, it affects the cell by causing damage and destroying
the cell. An example of viral disease is hepatises. Hepatesis is liver inflammation caused by a
viral infection or liver damage caused by excessive alcohol consumption. Hepatesis can be
spread through direct contact via infected blood, body fluids and personal contact with the
infected person.
Parasites are organisms that live in or on the host. When they enter the human body, they
can cause cell damage. Toxoplasmosis is an example of parasite disease. Toxoplasmosis is an
infectious disease caused by an infection with the toxoplasma gondii parasite. It can occur
as a result of eating undercooked contaminated meat, being expose to infected cat faces or
a mother transmitting to her baby during her pregnancy. When a person has a disease, they
may or may not have symptoms. The symptoms on the other hand are fever, fatigue,
headache and body aches. Toxoplasmosis patients do not require a treatment because they
recover on their own, but they can be treated with pyrimethamine, sulfadiazine and folic
acid drugs.
Protists are organisms which are not found in animals, plant, fungi or bacteria. They are
carried between hosts primarily in the small intestine and rely on vectors. This prevents the
host from absorbing all of the nutrients it requires. An example of protist disease is malaria.
Malaria can be a fatal disease which is caused and can be spread by an infected mosquito
biting a person. It is caused by a single celled parasites called ‘plasmodium’. The mosquito
injects parasites into the bloodstream, they can travel to cells, multiply the disease then
destroy the cell. The symptoms of it are fever, vomiting, sweats and anaemia. Malaria can
be treated by using anti-malaria tablets which kills the protist inside the body. Another
treatment can be vaccination which needs to be done when you are child.
, Fungi is a eukaryotic cell, unicellular or multicellular organisms which is mainly found on the
soil or plant material. An example of a fungal disease if ringworm. Ringworm is caused by a
fungal disease where later there is a rash anywhere on the body. It can be spread through
direct or indirect contact. A person or an animal can be infected from it as a result if another
person comes into contact with an infected person or animal, they will catch the disease.
However, it can also be spread through indirect contact when a person touches infected
objects such as bedsheets or towels. Ringworm can also be found on surfaces such as damp
areas.
People are most likely to get infectious disease in certain
countries due to poor sanitation, a lack of clean water,
poverty, a lack of vaccination, a lack of doctors and crowded
living condition as many people live in the same house in poor
condition where everyone is cramped together. Another
reason is due to poor environmental factors such as a clean
water, crowded houses and due to lack availability of health
services. Nutrition and lifestyle play an important role in the
development of infectious diseases because people are
unable to have an effective diet due to a lack of financial
Figure 1
resources resulting in a lack of all the nutrients, they
require such as vitamins, proteins.
There are several factors for why countries develop certain disease which can be seen in
figure 1 and why the level of mortality rate increases. For instance, diet, exercise, clean
water, quality of healthcare are the factors that impacts it. Since 2015-2020 Bulgaria has the
highest mortality rate amongst the world at 15.4% per 1,000 people. The reasons of the
death are due to non-communicable diseases such as respiratory, circulatory, digestive and
cancer. Ukraine has a death rate of 15.2% as healthcare service are not correctly financed,
poor vaccination rates. Furthermore, in Ukraine HIV/AIDS infectious has quickly spread and
in 2019 there was a measles pandemic. The thirds highest country with high mortality rate is
Latvia which is 14.6% per 1,000 people likewise with Ukraine their healthcare system is
poorly funded and other factors include smoking, drinking alcohol over the limit and
obesity. Lesotho has a death rate of 14.3% and is due to HIV/AIDS spreading leading to
deaths, tuberculosis, stroke, respiratory infections and ischemic heart disease. Lithuania
mortality rate are due to smoking and lung cancer causing 13,7% deaths per 1,000 people.
METHODS USE TO TREAT INFECTIOUS DISEASE:
Throughout the years medicine has advanced and developed ways in which we can treat
infectious disease such as vaccine, antimicrobial treatments, anthelmintic, immunoglobin
and rehydration therapies. A vaccine is used to treat viruses to prevent people from
catching an infectious disease. A doctor or nurse will be injecting a vaccine that contains a
small amount of the dead or weakened strain of the infectious disease then the human
body will produce antibodies to fight the disease which later create your body to be immune
to the disease as there will already be antibodies to fight the disease. Examples which
vaccination is used to treat is measles, influenza, smallpox, cholera and hepatitis.
Throughout the year vaccination has been proven to an effective way to prevent catching an
infectious disease in children from 85% to 95%.
