Communicable Diseases

COMMUNICABLE DISEASES
 Communicable diseases are illnesses that can be transmitted from one person to another.
 Some of the examples include;
 Gonorrhea
 Tuberculosis
 Malaria
 Meningitis
 Transmission is the passing of communicable diseases from an infected host individual or a con- specific (belonging to the same species) individual or group, regardless of whether the other individual was previously infected.
MODES OF INFECTION
 The main modes of infection are categorized into three;
 Direct
 Indirect
 Airborne
1. DIRECT MODE OF INFECTION
DIRECT TRANSMISSION
 By direct or immediate transfer of the agent to an appropriate portal of entry by personal contact, e.g. touching, biting, kissing, sexual intercourse
 By the direct projection of droplets onto the new host (through sneezing, coughing), but this must occur over a very short distance (1 meter or less) to be considered direct
 It is the spread of diseases from one infected host to a susceptible host.
 Two categories:
i. Person to person transmission ii. Animals transmission

PERSON TO PERSON TRANSMISSION
A. VENEREAL
1. SEXUAL CONTACT
Examples include;
 Gonorrhoea
 Genital warts
 Chlamydia
 Hepatitis B
 Herpes
 Trichomoniasis
2. THROUGH AIR
 They are transmitted through aerosols.
 These are airborne particles with organisms in droplet form. Can also be spread by ventilation system.
Examples include;
 Tuberculosis
 Measles
 Chicken pox
 Influenza
 Mumps
 Bacterial meningitis
3. FAECAL ORAL
 This is the mode of transmission in which microorganisms are transmitted through contaminated water, food and objects
Examples include;
a. Hepatitis A
b. Polio
c. Cholera
d. Rotavirus
e. Amoebiasis
f. Shigelosis
g. Giardiasis

4. FORMITES
 Inanimate or substance capable of carrying infectious organisms such as germs or parasites hence transferring them from one individual to another.
 They are transmitted through skin cells,