Communicable diseases are diseases that are spread from person to person via direct contact, airborne droplets or body fluids. Many states require that communicable diseases when they are identified by a health care provider, be reported to the state department of health. Diseases such as gonorrhea, tuberculosis and measles are examples of communicable diseases.
Gonorrhea
Gonorrhea is a sexually transmitted disease. Gonorrhea bacteria live in the mucosal areas of the body such as the penis, vagina and the oral mucosa. According to New York State Department of Health, this disease is more common in 15- to 30-year-olds and occurs more frequently in urban areas versus rural areas. This disease can also be spread from the mother to her newborn during birth. Men who are infected with gonorrhea complain of a discharge from the penis and painful urination. Women will have few symptoms but some may have a vaginal discharge. Infection in the mouth produces very few symptoms. Antibiotic treatment will cure gonorrhea, but the disease is becoming more drug resistant each year.
Tuberculosis
The World Health Organization says that 282,000 new cases of tuberculosis were reported in the Americas in 2008. Tuberculosis is spread via respiratory droplets. A person infected with TB coughs, and the microscopic droplets become airborne and are inhaled by another person. These droplets will infect the lungs and cause cavitary lesions. Cavitary lesions are cavities in the lungs where TB has destroyed lung tissue. TB can also be extrapulmonary or infect other organs besides the lungs. Symptoms of TB are low-grade fever, night sweats, fatigue and weight loss. A worrisome trend in TB is the development of multiple drug resistance.
Measles
Measles is a serious and occasionally fatal viral infection. This virus lives in the nose and throat of infected patients. Measles is also a spread via respiratory droplets. Symptoms of measles begin with a cough, runny nose and low-grade fever. A rash appears, which starts on the head and spreads over the trunk and extremities. The fever can go as high as 103. Because of widespread immunizations, measles cases are now rare in the United States. Ninety percent of reported cases of measles in 2008 were been brought in from other countries, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Americans traveling to other countries should be sure to be immunized against measles.
