Infectious diseases are caused by a pathogenic microorganism that enters the body and multiplies until it produces disease. Each one of them can be installed in a specific place in the body and, therefore, lead to one type of attachment or another.
Infectious diseases are caused by organisms such as viruses, bacteria, fungi or protozoa. Many organisms live in and on us. They are usually harmless or even helpful! But under certain conditions, some of them can cause diseases that can become very serious and even lead to death.
They can affect anyone. Everyone will suffer from more than one infection throughout their life.
They cause 1 out of every 3 deaths around the world.
They are the leading cause of death in the world, although they do not affect all countries in the same way
FluA virus is an infectious microorganism that cannot replicate on its own, but requires a cell to grow. Many infectious diseases are caused by viruses. Viruses have the characteristic of being changeable, since their genetic material has a great capacity to mutate.
Examples of viruses:
Although there are bacteria in the human body that normally are not harmful, such as those that make up the intestinal flora, many bacteria can cause diseases, some of which are very serious.
Examples of bacteria:
Infections caused by fungi are called mycosis. Mycoses are usually superficial and affect the skin, mucous membranes, hair and nails, although sometimes they are deep and affect internal organs. Infection tends to be indirect, through contaminated objects.
Examples of fungi:
Numerous species of protozoa live in nature, especially in the aquatic environment and in the soil, some of which are parasites of other organisms. Although most protozoa do no harm, some species cause quite serious diseases, especially in tropical areas.
Examples of protozoa:
Anyone is likely to suffer from more than one infectious disease in their lifetime, but there are some population groups that are at a greater risk.
Immunosuppressed people
Pregnant women
Children
We address the main challenges posed by infectious diseases from six major areas of knowledge. Each includes several lines of action →
At this time, resistance to antibiotics, which are the drugs that treat serious bacterial infections in people and animals, is becoming a serious global health problem.
Main causes of resistance to antibiotics :
· Excessive prescription of these drugs.
· Self-medication.
· Inadequate hygiene habits.
Without antibiotics we are putting our health at risk.
Investment in research is needed to discover new antibiotic drugs that are effective against all bacteria. If we don’t do this, the WHO estimates that 10,000,000 people could die in the world from a bacterium in 2050.
Vaccines are one of the greatest advances in medicine and public health in general and are necessary for dealing with infectious diseases.
It is key to keep researching to increase the number of vaccines that can fight a greater number of diseases and get them to eliminate viruses that still continue to cause death, such as HIV.
