In many cases, microbes exist in concord with their hosts. Such is the case for several tropical viruses and the insects, or other animals in which they have existed and replicated. Because the microbes and their hosts have co-evolved, the hosts progressively become challenging to the microorganisms. Sometimes, a microbe jumps from a long-time animal host to a human being; it ceases to be a harmless parasite and becomes a pathogen. When this comes to pass, a pathogen that had been restrained to an isolated habitat appears in a new or wider region or a microbe that had infected only animals all of a sudden commence to cause human diseases.
Diseases are of major concern in the human race.This is because they do affect all living thing i.e. both plants and animals. Diseases are mostly caused by pathogenic microbes which are categorized as either extrinsic or intrinsic microbes. Infectious diseases are also called contagious or communicable diseases due to their potentiality of spread from one person to another. Infectious disease is a clinically apparent disease resulting from the presence of pathogenic microbial agents such as viruses, fungi, bacteria, protozoa, and other multi-cellular parasites. The transmission of these diseases occur through one or more diverse pathway that includes physical contact with infected individuals, contaminated foodstuff, objects, airborne inhalation and vectors. Measles is one example of infectious disease. (Kenneth and Ray, 2004)
Measles remains a primary cause of death among young children $adults, both men and women, despite the availability of a secure and valuable vaccine for the past four decades. It is estimated that 345 000 people, majority of them being children, died from measles in 2005. Measles is one of the most communicable diseases well-known. Almost all vulnerable children contract measles if exposed to the virus. Measles is an acute viral ill health caused by viruses called paramyxovirus family. It is a respiratory disease which normally grows in the cells that line the back of the throat and in the cells that line the lungs. It is a human ailment with no known animal pool.
Internationally, 20 million cases occur annually to people traveling outside the United States. The disease is quite regular in many countries throughout the world. It was ranked fifth in the year 1993 after the top four HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and diarrhea diseases. It remains particularly deadly disease in countries experiencing and recovering from war or strife or any other natural disaster. Other factors that lead to increased infection rates are those involving damage of infrastructure, health services interruption and overcrowding in residential areas like refugee camps of displaced people. (Kenneth and Ray, 2004)
This highly contagious virus is spread through airborne droplets resulting from coughing and sneezing.it is also spread by close personal contact and direct contact with nasal or throat secretion of infected persons. The virus remains active and contagious on the infected individuals or air for up to two hour. It is transmitted from infected people after four days prior to the onset of the rash to four days after the onset. A person suffering the disease will to have higher proportion to infect susceptible individuals whom are in close contact with him.
Severe complications of measles are avoided through proper clinical management treatment of dehydration with oral rehydration solution together with general nutritional support are very necessary. Antibiotics prescribed by qualified physician are recommended for the treatment of eye and ear infections and pneumonia.improved survival is achieved through adequate nutrition and fluids. Two doses of vitamin A supplement are given to growing children at an interval of 24 hours. This has reduced measles deaths by 50 %.By using effective, safe and inexpensive vaccine, measles complications, suffering and death are controlled. (Kenneth and Ray, 2004)
Measles is now rare in many industrialized countries; it remains a common illness in many developing countries. More than 20 million people are affected each year by measles. The awesome majority 95% of measles deaths occur in countries with per capita Gross National Income of less than US $1000. The main reason for continuing rise of childhood measles morbidity and mortality is the failure to distribute at least one dose of measles vaccine to all infants. In countries where measles has been fundamentally eradicated, cases imported from other countries continue to be important sources of illness.
References
Kenneth J. R. and Ray, C. G. (2004): Sherris Medical Microbiology Fourth Ed. McGraw Hill.