scholarly journals A Quarter Century of Emerging Infectious Diseases – Where Have We Been and Where Are We Going?

2018 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 117
Author(s):  
James W. Le Duc ◽  
Teresa E. Sorvillo
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
The United States ◽  
International Travel ◽  
Emerging Infections ◽  
Quarter Century ◽  
Public Health Programs ◽  
National Public Health ◽  
Societal Changes

<p>A quarter century ago the landmark report from the U. S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine entitled <em>“</em><em>Emerging Infections, Microbial Threats to Health in the United States” </em>was released. This classic study captured the societal changes then underway in our rapidly growing world: The growth of the world’s population and changing human behavior; the advances and globalization of technology and industry; the changes in economic development and land use; the dramatic increase in speed and frequency of international travel and commerce; the adaptation of microbes and the appearance of never before seen pathogens; and the breakdown of traditional public health measures. This societal evolution has only increased and the growing frequency of outbreaks foretold in the report has come to pass. Each new disaster has precipitated changes and adaptations in our global response to infectious diseases designed to reduce risks and avoid future outbreaks. We discuss these past events and how each led to change in an effort to mitigate future threats. We also look to the future to consider what challenges might lay ahead.</p><p><strong>Conclusion. </strong>Major outbreaks over the past quarter century validated the concept of emerging infectious diseases and led to improvements in global policies and national public health programs; however, there will likely always be new diseases and the threat of reemergence of diseases once thought controlled leading to a constant need for vigilance in public health preparedness.</p>

scholarly journals Active surveillance of acute paediatric hospitalisations demonstrates the impact of vaccination programmes and informs vaccine policy in Canada and Australia

2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (25) ◽  
Author(s):  
Karina A Top ◽  
Kristine Macartney ◽  
Julie A Bettinger ◽  
Ben Tan ◽  
Christopher C Blyth ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Active Surveillance ◽  
Influenza A ◽  
Monitoring Program ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
Emerging Infections ◽  
Public Health Response ◽  
Influenza A H1n1 ◽  
The Impact

Sentinel surveillance of acute hospitalisations in response to infectious disease emergencies such as the 2009 influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 pandemic is well described, but recognition of its potential to supplement routine public health surveillance and provide scalability for emergency responses has been limited. We summarise the achievements of two national paediatric hospital surveillance networks relevant to vaccine programmes and emerging infectious diseases in Canada (Canadian Immunization Monitoring Program Active; IMPACT from 1991) and Australia (Paediatric Active Enhanced Disease Surveillance; PAEDS from 2007) and discuss opportunities and challenges in applying their model to other contexts. Both networks were established to enhance capacity to measure vaccine preventable disease burden, vaccine programme impact, and safety, with their scope occasionally being increased with emerging infectious diseases’ surveillance. Their active surveillance has increased data accuracy and utility for syndromic conditions (e.g. encephalitis), pathogen-specific diseases (e.g. pertussis, rotavirus, influenza), and adverse events following immunisation (e.g. febrile seizure), enabled correlation of biological specimens with clinical context and supported responses to emerging infections (e.g. pandemic influenza, parechovirus, COVID-19). The demonstrated long-term value of continuous, rather than incident-related, operation of these networks in strengthening routine surveillance, bridging research gaps, and providing scalable public health response, supports their applicability to other countries.

Role of the Medical Examiner in Zika Virus and Other Emerging Infections

2016 ◽  
Vol 141 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veena D. Singh ◽  
Sarah L. Lathrop
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome ◽  
Medical Examiner ◽  
Public Health Approach ◽  
Emerging Infections ◽  
Medical Examiners

Context.—Medical examiners and coroners have long been an integral component of public health, often being the first to recognize and describe emerging infectious diseases. Given their experience and access, medical examiners and coroners will provide valuable contributions to better understanding Zika virus infection and its sequelae. Objective.—To review past examples of medical examiner/coroner involvement in recognition of emerging infectious diseases and describe how medical examiners and coroners will be critical in understanding the pathophysiology of Zika infections. Design.—Review of the existing literature on the role of medical examiners and coroners in the identification of emergent infections and the available literature on Zika virus. Results.—Medical examiners and coroners have played a crucial role in identifying numerous emerging infectious diseases such as hantavirus pulmonary syndrome and West Nile virus, and have the expertise and experience to aid in elucidating the pathophysiologic effects of Zika virus and tracking its distribution and risk factors. Conclusions.—Medical examiners and coroners will be a significant factor in the unified public health approach needed to mitigate the effects of Zika virus and other, heretofore unrecognized, infectious diseases.

scholarly journals Regional Consortia

2021 ◽  
pp. 003335492110027
Author(s):  
Renée M. Ned-Sykes ◽  
Michael Pentella ◽  
Lorelei Kurimski ◽  
Susanne Zanto ◽  
E. Matt Charles ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
The United States ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Service Needs ◽  
Federal Programs ◽  
Public Health Programs ◽  
National Public Health ◽  
Practice Approach ◽  
And Control ◽  
Positive Effect

Public health laboratories (PHLs) provide specialized testing services for programs focused on the prevention and control of communicable diseases, early detection of congenital disorders, testing for antimicrobial resistance, and identification of environmental contaminants, among other responsibilities. Although national public health programs and partners provide some funding support, training, and technical resources to PHLs, no dedicated funding is provided from federal programs to fully support comprehensive PHL services across the United States or the underlying infrastructure needed for PHLs to provide and ensure their core functions and capabilities. Public health laboratories have begun to rely on a “community of practice” approach to addressing various service needs by creating and formalizing regional consortia, which are organized groups of geographically clustered PHLs that share expertise, capacities, and capabilities to enhance PHL services. The number of states participating in these networks increased from 13 to 48 from 2015 to 2020, including participation by multiple local PHLs and a territorial PHL. These consortia have enabled strengthening of partnerships and collaboration among PHLs to address regional priorities and challenges. We explore the background and evolution of regional consortia, outline some of their practices and activities, review lessons learned from these successful collaborations, and discuss the positive effect they have on the national public health system.

Emerging and re-emerging infections

2021 ◽  
pp. 269-286
Author(s):  
David L. Heymann ◽  
Vernon J.M. Lee
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Anthropogenic Activities ◽  
Safety Net ◽  
Human Populations ◽  
Emerging Infections ◽  
Species Barrier ◽  
Global Networks ◽  
National Public Health ◽  
Infrastructure Failure

Emerging infections are newly identified infections in humans—and are most often zoonotic—caused by infectious organisms that breach the species barrier between animals and humans. Re-emerging infections are known organisms that infect humans, but are identified after a period of absence from human populations. Re-emerging infections also often result from breaches in the species barrier. In addition to direct health outcomes of sickness and death, they also affect the economy, and may spread globally. This chapter discusses factors that influence the emergence of infectious diseases including weak public health infrastructure; failure of safety procedures and regulations; population shifts including rapid population increases and uncontrolled urbanization; anthropogenic activities and climate change; civil disturbance, human displacement, and natural disasters; human behaviours; and deliberate use to cause fear and harm. To address these threats, national public health systems must be strengthened to detect and respond to infectious diseases when and where they emerge, or re-emerge; and a safety net of global networks is required if and when the countries in which they emerge or re-emerge are unable to stop their international spread.

scholarly journals Institute of medicine publishes new report on microbial threats to health

2003 ◽  
Vol 7 (12) ◽  
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Health System ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Public Health System ◽  
The United States ◽  
Disease Outbreak ◽  
Institute Of Medicine ◽  
Emerging Infections

“Microbial Threats to health: emergence, detection, and response”, published this week by the Institute of Medicine focuses on the need for renewed commitment faced with the increased impact of infectious diseases in the United States since publication of the landmark report, “Emerging Infections: Microbial Threats to Health in the United States” in 1992. The report’s authors, the Committee on Emerging Microbial Threats to Health in the 21st century, recommend enhanced global capacity for response to infectious diseases and stresses the importance of a robust public health system in responding to any disease outbreak.

scholarly journals Dis/Avowing Masks: Culture, Race, and Public Health between the United States and Taiwan

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Alex Chen
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Social Relations ◽  
Scientific Knowledge ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
The United States ◽  
Political Conflict ◽  
Governmental Agencies ◽  
The Us ◽  
American Immigrant

COVID-19 brought masking, a practice that was largely confined to certain technical occupational settings in the US, into the heart of a national controversy. As with prior emerging infectious diseases (such as HIV, SARS, and Ebola), US public health experts and governmental agencies positioned themselves as authoritative producers of emerging scientific knowledge, including best practices for public masking. US epidemiological outcomes, however, have sorely lagged behind many other countries. The US leads the world in confirmed cases of and deaths from COVID-19, undermining presumed hierarchies in global health authority today. In this essay, I compare US and Taiwanese masking policies, delineating how social relations of care in the US become sites of political conflict within a hierarchical global ecology of scientific knowledge and medical supplies. Drawing upon my experience as an MD/PhD in anthropology trainee studying emerging infectious diseases and as a Taiwanese American immigrant, I explore conflicts over mask acquisition and usage across borders and time, illuminating global inequities of scientific knowledge production and pandemic containment and underscoring racialised disavowals that persist in US public health. These racialised disavowals illustrate the structural limits that circumscribe possibilities of containment during an uncontained pandemic.

scholarly journals Emerging Infectious Diseases in 2012: 20 Years after the Institute of Medicine Report

mBio ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 3 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
David M. Morens ◽  
Anthony S. Fauci
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Disease Surveillance ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
The United States ◽  
Institute Of Medicine ◽  
Emerging Infections ◽  
Microbial Detection ◽  
The Past ◽  
Prevention And Treatment ◽  
Looking Back

ABSTRACT Twenty years ago (1992), a landmark Institute of Medicine report entitled “Emerging Infections: Microbial Threats to Health in the United States” underscored the important but often underappreciated concept of emerging infectious diseases (EIDs). A review of the progress made and setbacks experienced over the past 2 decades suggests that even though many new diseases have emerged, such as SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) and the 2009 pandemic influenza, significant advances have occurred in EID control, prevention, and treatment. Among many elements of the increase in the capacity to control EIDs are genomics-associated advances in microbial detection and treatment, improved disease surveillance, and greater awareness of EIDs and the complicated variables that underlie emergence. In looking back over the past 20 years, it is apparent that we are in a time of great change in which both the challenge of EIDs and our responses to them are being transformed. Recent advances support guarded optimism that further breakthroughs lie ahead.

Biosecurity and Public Health Ethics Issues Raised by Biological Threats

2019 ◽  
pp. 773-785
Author(s):  
Nicholas Evans ◽  
Thomas Inglesby
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Resource Allocation ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
Biological Weapon ◽  
Ethical Values ◽  
Dual Use ◽  
Health Concerns ◽  
Trade Offs

This chapter introduces ethical issues that arise in the context of biosecurity: policies and actions intended to prevent the development or emergence, or mitigate the consequences, of serious biological threats. These threats could include deliberate biological weapon attacks (bioterrorism), pandemics, emerging infectious diseases, or major laboratory accidents. The basic values that underpin these public health concerns are first introduced. Ethical issues that arise before, during, and following a biosecurity crisis are then examined, including issues of resource allocation, dual-use research, and the possibility of quarantine. Their resolution requires trade-offs among different ethical values, including utility, fairness, and liberty.

State Intervention During Public Health Emergencies: Is the United States Prepared for an Ebola Outbreak?

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-Helen Maras ◽  
Michelle D. Miranda
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
State Intervention ◽  
The United States ◽  
International Travel ◽  
American Government ◽  
Training And Education ◽  
Public Health Emergencies ◽  
The Us ◽  
Bioterrorism Agent ◽  
Legal Guidelines

AbstractIn the fall of 2014, the US was faced with the reality that a deadly, foreign virus had entered its borders. Ebola, a disease thought to be of little threat to the US yet classified as a major bioterrorism agent, became a reality for the American government and its citizens. The introduction of Ebola unveiled many deficiencies in the country’s health care system, international travel policies, and ability to control or restrict the movement of exposed individuals in order to protect the larger population. The need to review and establish legal guidelines and policies to deal with these deficiencies is paramount: the inherent lack of training and education; weaknesses in monitoring, maintenance, and treatment; and the lack of uniform guidelines to isolate international travelers have all demonstrated that the country may not be able to control a larger-scale threat in the future.

scholarly journals Ocular manifestations of emerging viral diseases

Eye ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashwin Venkatesh ◽  
Ravi Patel ◽  
Simran Goyal ◽  
Timothy Rajaratnam ◽  
Anant Sharma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Influenza A ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Viral Diseases ◽  
Valley Fever ◽  
Ocular Manifestations ◽  
Influenza A H1n1 ◽  
Emerging Viral Diseases

AbstractEmerging infectious diseases (EIDs) are an increasing threat to public health on a global scale. In recent times, the most prominent outbreaks have constituted RNA viruses, spreading via droplets (COVID-19 and Influenza A H1N1), directly between humans (Ebola and Marburg), via arthropod vectors (Dengue, Zika, West Nile, Chikungunya, Crimean Congo) and zoonotically (Lassa fever, Nipah, Rift Valley fever, Hantaviruses). However, specific approved antiviral therapies and vaccine availability are scarce, and public health measures remain critical. Patients can present with a spectrum of ocular manifestations. Emerging infectious diseases should therefore be considered in the differential diagnosis of ocular inflammatory conditions in patients inhabiting or returning from endemic territories, and more general vigilance is advisable in the context of a global pandemic. Eye specialists are in a position to facilitate swift diagnosis, improve clinical outcomes, and contribute to wider public health efforts during outbreaks. This article reviews those emerging viral diseases associated with reports of ocular manifestations and summarizes details pertinent to practicing eye specialists.

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