Essays on Infectious Disease

Introduction

The Ebola virus has existed for centuries. Like all life forms and viruses, it has been changing and adapting since the beginning of time to survive. Despite this the disease did not make itself known until the twentieth century. However, once the virus revealed itself only three major outbreaks have occurred. There were two in 1976 and one which took started in 2014 (CDC, 2015). The latest outbreak has been the longest and worst, effecting numerous countries such as, Mali, Nigeria, Liberia and Senegal in West Africa (CDC, 2015). This paper will look at the scientific aspects of the ...

Pandemics and epidemics are terms related to the outbreak of any disease on a large

scale, anywhere in the world. Any society, community or locality can be affected by the outbreak of a disease at a particular time, which may cause death or result in a large population of people becoming critically ill. Any outbreak of a disease can last from days and even remain for years. This will depend on the intensity, kind of disease and extent of the outbreak. A disease of such nature, which affects a lot of people simultaneously, can be considered contagious. It might also be a new kind of disease, which might be previously unknown to the population ...

Assignment 3

Assignment 3

QUESTION 1 (1 point)

a) Statistical combination of the results of two or more studies

QUESTION 2 (1 point)

Figure 2 of the Jordan et al., meta-analysis depicts a forest plot illustrating the estimates of the association between hysterectomy and ovarian cancer. How many of the individual studies (in figure 2) reported statistically significant reductions in the risk of ovarian cancer in women with hysterectomy, compared to women without hysterectomy? Ans) There were 20 individual studies that reported statistically significant reductions in the risk of ovarian cancer in women with hysterectomy, compared to women without hysterectomy.

QUESTION 3 (1 point)

How would you interpret the overall summary estimate (relative ...

Abstract

In the last century, the knowledge of molecular biology has increased, opening new opportunities for addressing different diseases that have been affecting all populations. Before, genome and proteomic studies were seen as complicated field due to inability to get significance understanding of disease components at the molecular level. However, with the expansion of molecular biology, different techniques and tools have been developed to aid diagnosis and treatment of diseases. In this study, these tools have been investigated to understand how the knowledge on molecular diagnosis helps in detection and treatment of diseases. This study focused on the application of ...

Outbreaks of infectious disease is a problem that has existed throughout the history of the United States of America with three influenza outbreaks in the 20th century killing approximately 604,000 Americans between 1918-1968 (Johnstone, 2008, p. 1). While pandemics are quite noticeable, a biological weapon attack may be less noticeable. This is a huge issue when it comes to Anthrax which can remain dormant and undetected within an area for a number of years before finding a host to contaminate (Johnstone, 2008, p. 2). Another issue with Anthrax is that it is near indestructible. However, the United States ...

Tele-Medicine in a Satellite Facility

Telemedicine is an old concept but new technology that enables a healthcare provider at one location to provide basic healthcare services such as diagnosis, intra-operative assistance, and medical consultation to patients, physicians or paramedical staff in a satellite or remote facility. Most researchers and scientist believe that there is no substitute for patient-doctor face to face interaction; however, telemedicine could be used to manage a few medical cases efficiently and remotely. In first prototype of telemedicine was introduced in the 1980’s in the form of slow-scan images, facsimile machine or telephone (Hsieh, & Hsu, 2012).The mode of communications ...

Abstract

Over thirty years after its identification, HIV and AIDS remains a somewhat elusive virus, particularly when it comes to its history as a human infectious agent, and resourcing a complete epidemiology of the disease. Part of the problem is that so many antiretroviral drugs have come out and have either been used or prescribed incorrectly. In addition, the virus, like many other reverse RNA transcriptase viruses, has a very high aptitude in terms of developing resistance to drugs at a very rapid rate. What further complicates matters is how quickly it has spread. It will probably never truly be ...

The study of infectious diseases has always been crucial to mankind because of the devastating effects it has had on the human race. The influenza epidemic, for example, occurred repeatedly in the 20 th and 21st century, spreading across large regions and multiple continents. Influenza in 1918 killed an estimated 50 million people world wide. This was higher than the amount of people that died in World War I. About 500,000 fatalities occurred in the US which was approximately 28% of the US population at that time. The number of deaths that took place in 1957 and 1968 ...

Immunizations in Children

According to World Health Organization (WHO), “Immunization is the process whereby a person is made immune or resistant to an infectious disease, typically by the administration of a vaccine” (World Health Organization). This definition of WHO can be further elaborated by saying that the concept of immunization works by stimulation of the immune system. The immune system performs the function of protecting the body against disease causing agents. In its healthy condition, the body’s immune system has the ability to recognize any invading microbe. The leucocytes identify the microbes and produce antibodies against them. These antibodies are capable ...

Death in early twentieth century

Causes-In the beginning of the twentieth century, the most common causes of death were infectious diseases. These were the likes of pneumonia, influenza, and tuberculosis. Most treatments at the time were not very effective. In the event of severe attacks on individuals, they took a massive toll on health and often led to death. Other diseases included gastrointestinal infections such as diarrhea, typhoid, and cholera. At that time, most people did not maintain proper hygienic standards. Though most were aware, they at times ignored them or never took them seriously. Nevertheless, these diseases were not very fatal and could ...

Tuberculosis is one of the respiratory diseases that has currently affecting many individuals. This condition mainly attacks the lungs of the patient. The disease is highly infectious in the sense that it can easily spread from a healthy to an unhealthy individual via tiny infected droplets found in coughs and sneezes (World Health Organization, 2013). It is imperative that individuals who have been affected by this condition take a variety of medication in their treatment regimen with the intentions of solving it satisfactorily.

Description

The causative agent for TB is a bacteria referred to as Mycobacterium tuberculosis which is spread ...

Abstract

Measles starts with fever, runny nose, and watery eyes, and a rash may develop after a few days. The illness is not serious but can get serious if the infection spread to other parts of the body and spread to the community. The patient can develop a lung infection, ear infection and may even die. There is no medicine as of yet that can kill the measles. What adds to the gravity is that it is a highly communicable disease that can easily spread. The essay discusses the epidemiological determinants of the outbreak of measles and the risk factors ...

Overtime, infectious diseases have been responsible for massive outbreaks of diseases resulting in numerous deaths. In the contemporary world, infectious diseases are still responsible for numerous documented deaths while simultaneously increasing the global burden of disease. Among the numerous infectious diseases with a high disease burden is the recently rediscovered Zika virus. This manuscript thus offers a succinct analysis of the presented infectious disease. Inferences are drawn from a recently published article which the contextual issue. Among the issues appraised in this manuscript are the correlation between the disease’s causal agents, the susceptible individuals and the relevant environmental ...

Electronic Health Records (EHR)

An Electronic Health Record (EHR) is a patient’s chart that is digitalized. It is a patient record that is real and efficient in delivering the patient's information instantly when needed. The system includes not only the patient's treatment history but also the tools that a physician can use while treating the patient. It also helps to streamline the doctor's workflow automatically (Sittig et al., 2015). On this paper, we shall discuss the MediTouch EHR®. The MediTouch EHR® is one of the EHR that is complete web-based and offers the touch-screen user interface. According to Software Advice, the software ...

1) Introduction

The Katrina Hurricane disaster is an experience for which it seemed that the United States government was ill prepared. According to analysts, New Orleans was never equipped with any disaster preparedness strategies to combat a hurricane much more one of the Katrina magnitude. This was a known irregularity, but public health and government officials took no time to address these issues. For example, it was further reported that the infrastructure on which New Orleans was built ...

Nations all over the world have been fighting for equality and equal rights all throughout history. However, in the year 2013 not everybody is equal and there are people dying as we speak, while we could save them. Africa suffers and sees their children die from malaria and poverty. According to UNICEF (2002), 99 percent of deaths from malaria occur in Africa, where one in six childhood deaths is due to malaria. In terms of numbers, about 3,000 people die from malaria in Africa within each passing day, among of which are children and pregnant women (Okwa). ...

1. Examine the inequalities of health care in Canada.

Health disparities have been reported in Canada for almost 40 years, particularly among people of low socioeconomic status, Aboriginal identity, female gender, and who live in rural or remote communities (Touhy et al., 2012). “People who are part of a visible minority tend to be economically disadvantaged with blacks and Aboriginals faring worse” (Touhy, et al., 2012, p.52). Little has been done to enhance their access to health services. Aboriginal people have limited access to doctors and dentists even though they have more health care needs than non-Aboriginal Canadians (Fred, 2009). For example, the life expectancy of Aboriginals is ...

The world is suffering from several problems, and these problems are common in the developing as well as in the developed world. Such as Julian Cribb has described in, ‘The Coming Famine’ that there is a problem global food shortage prevailing in the world. The resources of high demand such as land, water, technology, knowledge, and energy are depleting that is effecting the economic growth (Cribb, 2010). Similarly, the spread of the infectious diseases is also a global problem that has disturbed the countries worldwide. The advent of the novel infections and diseases and there-emergence of the previous infections has ...

1. What microorganism do you believe is to blame for this illness (be specific)? Provide background information on this organism, history, morphology, virulence factors, toxins

Hemophilus Influenza is a cocobacillus that is small, pleomorphic and is gram-negative. It is non-motile and does not form spores. It is also a facultative anaerobe. Some strains of Hemophilus influenza have a capsule composed of polysaccharide (Deverajan, 2012), (CDC, 2013). There are 6 different stereotypes of the virus, labeled a-f. This division is based on the biochemical differences in the capsules (Deverajan, 2012). Some strains of Hemophilus Influenza do not possess capsules and are therefore referred to as nonencapsulated Hemophilus Influenza. They are also sometimes called nontypeable Hemophilus influenza. Identification of the different strains is done by slide agglutination for stereotyping ( ...

Abstract

In this essay, a description of the three most important features of an infectious disease so that it may be regarded as truly harmful and cause for great fear for the community’s health is made – the infectivity, pathogenicity and virulence. It is also justified and explained why these should be regarded as the most important ones, being that they are the ones that cause higher numbers of diseased people with great and quick consequences.

Furthermore, it is also explored why the others – toxigenicity, resistance and antigenicity – should only be regarded secondary to the onset of ...

Evidence based practice and applied nursing research are interrelated with emphasis being put on utilization of research related nursing practice. Nurses are encouraged to utilize research findings in order to make an impact on the health of individuals and groups that are under their Care and this has been directly linked to the development of the Evidence Based Practice (EBP). EBP is an interdisciplinary approach to clinical practice that is rapidly gaining popularity; its basic principle is that all decisions and interventions are made based on research studies and evidence derived from systematic collection of data, observation, experiment, questionnaire ...

Hantavirus Cariopulmonary Syndrome

Hantaviruses are a group of RNA viruses, which are members of the Bunyaviridae virus family. several serotypes have been identified worldwide. Hantavirus cardiopulmonary Syndrome is a disease syndrome which is caused by the Sin Nombre Virus (SNV). however, some other strains of the Hantavirus family could also cause disease syndromes which are very similar in presentation to Hantavirus cardiopulmonary Syndrome. (Cunha, 2011). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Hantavirus infection in humans is classified as an emerging infectious disease. this is because a lot of facts remain unknown about the disease and its presentation in humans. however, Hantavirus ...

The Case Scenario

Recent clinical evidence-based guidelines suggest that a “watch and see” approach may be best in the management of pediatric acute otitis media. In this case scenario, a team of nurses in the outpatient clinic are considering whether they should use this approach to manage AOM in the children they see. They plan to evaluate clinical studies before making their final decision. The nurses are also aware of the possibility of parental concerns concerning a change in treatment protocols. The studies are analyzed in this paper.

Cautionary use of Antibiotics in Acute Otitis Media

Acute otitis media (AOM) is the most common pediatric bacterial infection in the U.S. and ...

Abstract

It is disheartening to stand and watch infants and children come for clinical checkups and get pumped with one antibiotic after another. Sad still is the fact that most parents tend to believe that by so doing, they are helping their children overcome illnesses. Acute otitis media, an occurrence that is quite prone to children between two months and two years, has shown warring trend lately. The challenge that is present is in the fact that enormous works have supported antibiotic administration to cure and curb the spread of the infections. However, it is not until lately that the ...

The biography and drama film Dallas Buyers Club which was released in 2013 is perhaps one of the most controversial movies ever released about HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) infection and its more severe counterpart AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome). When the film was released, lot of people watched it. This is because it talked about one of the most serious issues in the medical and healthcare industry that no one really seems to care about ad that is AIDS activism. The objective of this paper is to present a critical and contextual review of the movie Dallas Buyers Club focusing ...

Ethical dilemma

Ethics are an important part of the medical profession so in a case such as this when one is confronted by a dilemma such as the one described in the quesyion, it is important to act accordingly. In a case where a patient is found with an infectious disease, the health authorities should be informed as soon as possible and measures should imemdiately be taken to isolate the patient accordingly. As soon as the patient is diagnosed with the infectious disease, no time should be wasted to create the Electronic Medical Record based on the information available. If no physician is present ...

Improving The Efficiency of Cytomegalovirus (CMV)

Abstract The Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is known to be an important pathogen among patients with prolonged confinement to the intensive care unit and longer hospital stays (Vincent, 2010). The virus is recognized to be a common form of the herpes virus, which the Centers for Disease Control described to be present in about 50% to 80% of the people in the United States who are in their 40’s (Mandal, 2014). The infection can actually affect children and adults alike, however the virus has the greatest impact among certain individuals, especially among children and those with a compromised immune system and ...

(City, State)

Introduction

Tuberculosis or TB refers to a common, deadly, and infectious disease that is caused by a number of mycobacteria strains (Kumar, et al., 2007). The most common mycobacterium that causes TB is the Mycobacterium tuberculosis. TB usually affects the lungs, although it is also possible for the other body parts to be affected. The disease uses air as the medium of spreading the infection when infected people sneeze, cough or transmit fluids from the respiratory organs through air. Some of the symptoms associated with the different TB variant, as well as TB stages, include chills, loss of appetite, fever, ...

Thesis Proposal

Target 4a of the millennium development goals (MDGs) is to reduce by two-thirds the under-five mortality rate. So far, global statistics have shown that the mortality rate of this sector has been reduced by 17,000 deaths annually. However, the United Nations reports that in sub-Saharan Africa, one ten children die before reaching age five while it is one in sixteen children in Southern Asia. In these areas, as well as in low-income communities elsewhere, the role of community workers cannot be discounted, particularly in preventing the spread of infectious diseases such as measles and dengue fever. It is ...

Causes

Bacteria, which lives in the soil is the main cause of tuberculosis. It spreads to humans through a mechanism, which involves breathing the dusty air where the bacteria are present. Further, breathing the air coughed out by an infected person or by drinking milk from an infected cow can cause infection of the disease.

Symptoms

A common symptom of TB is the presence of a productive cough that can last more than two weeks. Other respiratory symptoms, which include chest pains, shortness of breath and haemoptysis accompanies the productive cough (World Health Organization, 2010). Additional symptoms include weight loss, night sweats, fatigue, ...

- Timeline of Ebola Outbreaks The world first came to know about Ebola virus in the late 1970s through a series of hemorrhagic fever outbreak in Congo and Sudan. Since then traditional quarantine methods were employed to control the outbreak from the clinics and hospitals in Africa. Research efforts on Ebola began to diminish upon the report of an isolated case in Tandala and a small outbreak in Sudan. However, ten years later (1989) Ebola virus re-emerged on cynomolgous monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) in a research facility in Reston, Virginia in the United States. Such outbreak prompted several laboratory studies to understand ...

- Describe the role of the following in protein synthesis - DNA, nucleotides, RNA, ribosomes, rough ER, and Golgi apparatus. DNA or deoxyribonucleic acid is a double stranded hereditary molecule containing the genetic code from which specific protein molecules are synthesized. First step in protein synthesis is synthesis of single stranded complementary RNA. RNA also contains all the components of DNA except a ribose sugar. Special RNA called messenger RNA (mRNA) carries the message to ribosomes. Under mRNA’s direction, transfer RNA (tRNA) delivers amino acids to ribosomes and ribosomal RNA (rRNA) attaches each amino acid to form the final ...

Evidence-based Research Article Evaluations and Applications

Types of Sources of Evidence in Nursing Practice Although nursing practice must implement evidence-based practices (EBP), not all sources of evidence can be considered equally valuable. In nursing research, sources can be filtered, unfiltered, or general information sources. The article by Kelley, Friedman & Johnson (2007) is an example of a general information source because it does not focus on a specific problem or intervention. Instead, the article provides a comprehensive overview of various disorders in otorhinolaryngology (e.g. otitis externa, acute otitis media [AOM], mastoiditis, rhinosinusitis, etc.) and reviews their etiology, symptoms, predisposing factors, treatment strategies, and prognoses. The articles by ...

Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of human beings as well as other animals that is caused by parasitic protozoans belonging to the genus Plasmodium. This disease is prevalent in tropical as well as subtropical areas in a wide circle around the equator, including a large part of Sub-Saharan Africa, the Americas, and Asia. Even though the agent for P. falciparum malaria has existed for 50,000 to 100,000 years, the population of the parasite did not rise until approximately 10,000 years ago, at the same time with progresses in agriculture (Harper and Armelagos) together with the human settlements ...

SEX ON THE MEDIA LANDSCAPE

With this generation being at the boom of information technology, the media is buzzing with sexual content that has tantamount effects on the society in general. Teenagers remain the most affected group by indecent exposure of sexual activity in mainstream media (Huston, Wartella & Donnerstein, 1998; American Academy of Pediatrics, 1995). Nevertheless, some scholars and researchers have argued that display of educative sexual content on media may have immense benefits on enlightening the society; however the pertinent question arises as to whether mainstream media is displaying sexual content that is beneficial or harmful to the society. This paper will talk ...

Introduction

Ms. Q is a patient who was diagnosed with an HIV infection five years ago. She has continued to work as a receptionist at an insurance agency throughout this time. Although HIV is a contagious disease, one cannot contract it by touching or sitting next to infected person. Ms. Q recently took a tuberculin skin test, and the results came out positive. Since tuberculin is a very contagious disease, she has decided to share the results of her test with her co-workers and customers of the agency because of the risk she could cause them. Tuberculosis is an infectious disease cause by Mycobacterium tuberculosis ( ...

Forum 4:- Epidemic vs. Pandemic

Ten epidemic diseases with pandemic potentials are:- - SARS - Gonorrhea - Dengue - Yellow fever - HIV/AIDS - Measles - Smallpox - Herpes - Cholera - Avian Flu (Morgan, 2004). HIV/AIDS is a communicable disease, which is transmitted through sexual intercourse or contact with infected blood. It has already reached epidemic proportions and swiftly moving towards pandemic due to the sexually transmitted nature of the disease and there is no way to tell physically if a person is infected with the virus. Epidemiological figures in 2010 revealed that ...

Abstract

Tuberculosis, better known as TB, is an infectious disease that affects the global community. Its incidence rate has been significant in the New Zealand region where the disease is considered to be pandemic and has accrued a significant burden on the healthcare system for its demands on timely diagnosis and treatment. Although a decline of its incidence in New Zealand was noted, such decline halted sometime in the 1980’s and the rate of incidence becomes consistent thereafter and it remains to be an apparent health problem in the region which is highly associated with migration issues and other factors that ...

Abstract

Trichomonas gallinae, a flagellated protozoan, adversely affects the avian livestock, particularly the columbids. It causes an infection called necrotic ingluvitis and the disease can range from asymptomatic to lethal. The parasite affects the anterior gastrointestinal tract of the bird, forms granulomatous lesions, and blocks the oesophagus, making the bird starve, thus leading to death. The virulence of the strain varies with some strains causing up to 75% mortality. In UK, the infection was first recognized as an emerging infectious disease of British finches in summer of 2005. The sick dead birds exhibited signs of malaise such as lethargy and fluffed-up ...

- INFORMATION OVERLOAD (discussion 1) Some of the ways in which I experience information overload at school is by being allocated large amounts of homework that I am expected to complete in a short time. In addition, the coverage of large amount of information by the instructor sometimes makes it difficult to grasp the material that is taught. This scenario is also exemplified in the work place. If there is a lot of work to be completed in a short time, it is difficult for quality work on to be done due to the information overload. - WEB SOURCE (discussion ...

Executive summary.

On 5th of December 2010 the American giant company in the field of pharmaceuticals announced its intention to acquire the Dutch company crucell which was in which it had already controlled 17.5% at a price of $2.3 billion, which would be a price of 24.75 Euros per share which was a purchase price 58% above the actual closing day price of the share ant thus crucell would have recorded a capital gain per share of 14.36 Euros. The company was to acquire 98.98 % of the issued crucell share. crucell was acquire to be acquired in multiple steps with the period of February 23 ...

Prof:

Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) was discovered in the last decade. The disease is a human acute respiratory disorder that was associated with a global outbreak which all occurs within few weeks of first identification of the case. This viral disease resulted in a state of confusion and criticism against China that acted slowly on reporting the first case that was identified (WHO, 2003). The disease is caused by SARS coronavirus which basically spread via contact with respiratory secretions of infected patients. The disease presented a form of formidable challenges to the medical world with various forms of social, economic and political ...

Report on Acute Otitis Media in Children 2 months to 12 years old.

A.1. Classify the type of each source of evidence as either a general information resource, a filtered resource, or an unfiltered resource.

A.2 Discussion on whether each source of evidence is appropriate for this nursing practice situation

A.3.Classify each source of evidence as primary research evidence, evidence summary, evidence-based guideline, or none of these. Section B Discussion on whether watchful waiting is an appropriate approach for treating children with acute Otitis media, based on the evidence presented in the article.

Section C

Discussion about application findings in attached ...

Abstract

Hospitals globally need to ensure that they shift concerns to the concept of risk management. This allows for the identification, evaluation and prioritization of risks within the hospital environment. The process promotes good health among workers and patients by simply providing measures that may be implemented to combat risks that may adversely affect the well being of workers and patients and the public in general. There are a lot of risks that may be experienced within a hospital setting. Among them is the risk of acquiring infectious disease. Therefore this calls for need of infection control from the perspective of ...

Abstract

This is a report on Hepatitis C virus infection in Australia discussing the population at risk, clinical presentation, management, and issues with vaccine production. The findings in the report show that injecting drug users among youths are the major group at risk. The presentation of the disease could be in acute or chronic form. The management is not 100 percent achievable due to unclear reasons but the drugs are effective. There are major side effects associated with the drugs hence there is a need for pre and post testing counseling. The major issue with the infection is the absence of vaccine ...