Blog

Jun 15
Jun 10
Jun 10

#IDFridays Week 16: Diphtheria

This bacteria produces a poison that can spread around the body Name Diphtheria Transmission An infection caused by the Corynebacterium diphtheriae bacteria People become infected through direct physical contact with an infected person: Inhaling respiratory droplets from the infected person coughing or sneezing Touching open sores/skin lesions of an infected person (rare)... read more →
Jun 03

#IDFridays Week 15: Lassa Fever

First discovered in Nigeria, the symptoms of this disease can seem similar to Ebola Name Lassa fever Transmission An infectious haemorrhagic virus which lives in the Mastomys or multimammate rat People become infected mostly through direct contact with infected rats or through food or household items contaminated with infected rodent feces/urine Person-to-person transmission... read more →
May 27

#IDFridays Week 14: Elephantiasis

This disease can make your limbs look like the legs of an elephant Name Lymphatic filariasis, commonly known as elephantiasis Transmission An infectious tropical disease caused by three types of filarial parasites (thread-like roundworms) These microscopic worms live in the lymphatic system for an average of 5–8 years and disrupt the... read more →
May 20

#IDFridays Week 13: Meningitis

There are six different types of meningitis and all have the potential to kill Name Meningitis. The six types are: Bacterial Viral Fungal Parasitic Amoebic Non-infectious In this post, we are focusing on a type of bacterial meningitis called meningococcal meningitis Transmission Meningitis is a serious infection of the thin... read more →
May 13

#IDFridays Week 12: Chikungunya

This virus is spread through the same mosquitoes that carry Zika and Dengue Name Chikunguya (in the Kimakonde language of Tanzania and Mozambique, “chikungunya” means “to become contorted” which describes patients who are bent over from severe joint pain, one of the symptoms) Transmission The virus is transmitted to humans through infected mosquitoes Mosquitoes become infected when they... read more →
May 11
May 06

#IDFridays Week 11: Dengue

Surpassing malaria, dengue is the fastest growing mosquito-borne disease in the world Name Dengue Transmission A disease caused by any one of four closely related dengue viruses The viruses are transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected mosquito It occasionally develops into a potentially lethal complication called severe... read more →
May 04