Prevention and Control of Emerging Infectious Diseases

Author: Beijing Preventive Medicine Association
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2002-01-01
Features: Prevention and Control of Emerging Infectious Diseases is written by epidemiology and infectious disease experts organized by the Beijing Preventive Medicine Association, including institutions such as the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, and Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The book comprehensively introduces the occurrence, development, brief history, microbiological characteristics, clinical manifestations, epidemiological features, diagnosis and differential diagnosis, preventive measures, and treatment methods of 31 newly discovered infectious diseases in the world in recent years. It holds significant reference value for expanding knowledge, enhancing awareness, and improving the prevention and treatment of diseases among medical workers, disease prevention and control personnel, and health management staff. "Global Alert, Act Now, Defend Against Emerging Infectious Diseases." The theme of World Health Day in 1996 remains vivid in people's minds. We have every reason to believe that in the 20th century, humanity has achieved remarkable progress in combating infectious diseases, both theoretically and practically. Especially with the use of "vaccines," many infectious diseases threatening human health and life have been effectively prevented and controlled. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1996, among the 52 million deaths worldwide, 17 million were caused by infectious diseases or closely related to them. "Old infectious diseases are resurgent, and new infectious diseases are continuously emerging." has become a basic consensus among experts and scholars in the field of preventive medicine. Emerging infectious diseases (EID) refer to those newly discovered compared to previously known infectious diseases, especially in recent years, diseases such as AIDS, mad cow disease, Ebola hemorrhagic fever, and cholera O139 have become global public health issues. Statistics from the U.S. Laderberg in 1996 show that among the 31 newly discovered infectious diseases, 14 are viral, 11 are bacterial, and 6 are parasitic. Another 8 were discovered after 1996, bringing the total to 39. Some scholars point out that factors that contribute to the introduction of new pathogens into the population or help them establish and spread in the population can influence the occurrence of emerging infectious diseases. Based on this, it can be argued that changes in the human living environment, gradual economic integration, and increased human interaction frequency objectively increase the probability of emerging infectious diseases and the potential for outbreaks. Given that Beijing has become an international metropolis, especially after joining the WTO, international exchanges have become more frequent, and the opportunity for emerging infectious diseases to occur has also increased. Fully recognizing the harm of emerging infectious diseases, strengthening theoretical and practical research, exploring new control technologies and measures, and improving the social stability of large cities and the safety of the population are the responsibilities and missions of all preventive medicine workers. Academic materials on newly discovered infectious diseases are gradually increasing. The Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) and the Epidemiology Weekly Report (EWR) published by the World Health Organization (WHO) currently hold authoritative status. Even in these purely disease reporting publications, China still lacks a specialized journal for EID, and monographs are even rarer. Organizing epidemiology and infectious disease experts from institutions such as the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, and Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention to write a monograph on emerging infectious diseases, tailored to Beijing's characteristics, is a highly meaningful endeavor.