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•What to do questions
•What Did You Find Out questions 1 and 3
Possible Biological Weapons
Anthrax — bacteria; transmitted through skin, inhalation, and gastrointestinal tract;
highly lethal when inhaled. It does not spread from person to person. An anthrax
vaccine does exist, but is not readily available. Antibiotics are used to treat
anthrax.
Smallpox — virus; highly contagious; spread by air and direct contact; high
mortality rate. Smallpox has killed more people over time than any other infectious
disease, including the plague.
Cholera — bacteria; transmitted through water and food. Treatment involves
replacing fluids and salt lost through diarrhea and vomiting.
Plague — bacteria; highly contagious; transmitted by fleas; high mortality rate. It
causes a type of pneumonia and can be fatal if not caught early. Antimicrobials are
used to treat the disease.
Botulism — one of the deadliest toxins caused by bacteria; can be inhaled or
ingested. Severe botulism causes respiratory failure and paralysis. Antitoxins and
assisted ventilation are used to treat the disease.
Ebola — virus causes hemorrhagic fever; extremely lethal; spread through direct
contact with blood and body fluids; symptoms are profuse bleeding from body
openings. There is no cure or treatment.
Meningitis —bacteria; spread through direct contact. Bacterial meningitis is
serious and requires urgent treatment with antibiotics to prevent permanent
damage or death. There is a vaccine for the most common form of bacterial
How Communicable Diseases Spread
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Airborne
Water-borne
Carried in Food
Direct Contact
Contact with a carrier
Contact through a wound.
How Non-communicable Diseases Spread
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Environment
Diet
Lifestyle
Genetic
Scenario 1
A pregnant woman unknowingly passes the virus to her unborn child
after contracting it from her partner.
Scenario 2
A man who knows he is carrying the AIDS virus continues to have
unprotected sex with others without telling them.
Scenario 3
A small group of drug users routinely share needles when getting high.
One of them knows she has AIDS but does not tell the others.
Scenario 4
A man unknowingly received the AIDS virus during a blood transfusion that
occurred before blood was screened for AIDS. He transmitted the virus to
his partner.