Infectious Diseases (Human and Animal)

Viral haemorrhagic fever is a general term for severe illnesses, sometimes associated with bleeding, that may be caused by a number of viruses. The term is usually applied to diseases caused by viruses that belong to the Arenaviridae, Bunyaviridae, Filoviridae and Flaviviridae families (WHO, no date).

Smallpox is an acute contagious disease caused by the variola virus (WHO, 2019).

Cryptosporidium is a microscopic parasite that causes the watery diarrhoeal disease cryptosporidiosis (WHO, 2013).

Rabies is a vaccine preventable zoonotic disease causing acute encephalitis which can progress towards coma and death typically within 7 to 10 days of the first signs if no intensive care is instituted. It is a disease of public health concern (adapted from WHO, 2018, 2020).

Leptospirosis is an infectious disease caused by pathogenic Spirochaetes of the genus Leptospira. These bacteria called leptospires affect both humans and animals. Humans become infected through direct contact with the urine of infected animals or with a urinecontaminated environment. It is a zoonosis. Human-to-human transmission occurs only very rarely (adapted from WHO and ILS, 2003 and WHO, 2020).

Peste des petits ruminants is a highly contagious and devastating disease of goats and sheep. The causative agent, Peste des petits ruminants virus is a member of the genus Morbillivirus, Family Paramyxoviridae and Order Mononegavirales (adapted from FAO, 2020a; OiE, 2020).

Antimicrobial resistant microorganisms are those microorganisms (such as bacteria, fungi, viruses, and parasites) that change when they are exposed to antimicrobial drugs (such as antibiotics, antifungals, antivirals, antimalarials, and anthelmintic). Microorganisms that develop antimicrobial resistance are sometimes referred to as ‘superbugs’. As a result, the medicines become ineffective and infections persist in the body, increasing the risk of spread to others (WHO, 2020).

Varicella is an acute, highly contagious disease caused by varicellazoster virus (WHO, 2014).

Paratyphoid fever is a systemic disease caused by the bacterium Salmonella Paratyphi usually through ingestion of contaminated food or water (WHO, 2019).

Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a viral respiratory illness caused by a coronavirus called SARS-associated coronavirus (SARSCoV) (WHO, 2019).