Deadliest Diseases Of This Decade

Medical technology has advanced a lot in the last decade. However, it has not been able to protect us from novel viruses, toxins or unhealthy eating habits. There is still a long way to go in making the human population disease-free. Numerous health treats have threatened to put us at risk over the last decade. Some of them have been almost harmless, others more serious but exaggerated and some actually lethal. Let’s take a closer look at the deadliest diseases that we’ve witnessed this past decade. Go through the list and tell us if it surprises you –

• Zika virus – The Aedes mosquito acts as an agent of the Zika virus. It was identified in humans in the year 1952. Pregnant women with unborn babies who contract the virus can develop serious birthing complications, to the extent of passing on congenital brain abnormalities to the fetus. Zika virus cannot be transmitted by a human to another, unless sexual intercourse is involved. Semen is thought to be a carrier of the virus. The symptoms associated with this virus are mild and only last from 2-7 days. They range from a headache, joint pain, rash and fever. The latest outbreak of the virus was reported in India in 2017. Brazil, South and North America as also some parts of the Caribbean have reported cases of Zika virus outbreak.
• Marburg disease – Spread by bats, the Marburg disease enables human-to-human transmission via bodily fluids. The hemorrhagic virus falls in the same group as Ebola. The deadly disease can result in bleeding from your internal organs. Identified after an outbreak in Marburg and Frankfurt, Germany and another in Serbia in 1967. Infections in the old days were primarily reported by those who were subject to prolonged exposure to caves/mines that were frequented by the Rousettus bat colony. The symptoms for this disease flare up suddenly with a high fever accompanied by a severe headache. Diarrhea, vomiting and bleeding from the gastrointestinal tract are other common symptoms. Marburg disease has an incubation period of 2-21 days. The latest case of Marburg disease was reported in 2017 in Uganda.
  
  
• Ebola – Ebola is a hemorrhagic disease which causes hemorrhaging in internal organs. It can be fatal if not treated in time. Although there is no known cure for the disease, it can be treated with supportive care. Fruit bats from the Pteropodidae species are believed to carry the virus. Human-to-human transmission is possible by way of bodily fluids and contaminated injectables. The incubation period for the Ebola virus is 3-8 days. You may experience a sudden onset of fatigue, fever, nausea, diarrhea, abdominal pain severe headache and even gastrointestinal bleeding as symptoms. The Ebola virus was registered in West Africa from 2014-2016 and then the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2017
  
  

Apart from these three diseases, Avian influenza, first reported in China in 2013 has also been very common in the past decade. Contracted mainly through contact with poultry, it can lead to serious respiratory complaints. Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, body and headaches along with fever and flu-like symptoms.

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