Reportable Communicable Diseases

Reportable diseases are known as Notifiable diseases in Medical terms. There are many diseases which are highly infectious in nature. These diseases spread rapidly from person to person, and can affect a large amount of population within a short period of time.

The resulting phenomenon is called as an Epidemic, when a large amount of population is affected, but the population is limited only to a specific area, or part of a specific country, or within a specific country

When the disease spreads very rapidly, taking down population from one country to another, it is called as a Pandemic. The disease usually spreads through travelers or even goods being exchanged between different countries.

Both these Pandemics and epidemics are required by every government in every country, to be reported to the relevant medical regulatory authority of the said country.

Every country has a different list of Reportable communicable diseases, simply because some diseases are more prevalent in certain countries, and other countries may have some other diseases which are highly prevalent in their locality.

The reporting or notification is done by the regional medical centre, to the regulatory medical body.

There are certain diseases which require to be reported or notified even if there is only a single case of that disease diagnosed.

Examples are Cholera, diphtheria, smallpox, etc.

Whereas certain diseases are notified only after there are an increasing number of cases of that specific disease, being diagnosed within a short interval, say, within 1 to 3o days.

Once any disease, be it a Pandemic or an Epidemic disease is reported or notified to the government regulatory medical body, the patients are kept in isolation, in government hospitals and medical centers. The patient is monitored while in treatment, and discharged from the hospital only after the necessary remedial measures have been completed and the infective period is completely over.

The significance of the Notifiable diseases is that, WHO, or the World Health Organization can impose travel and trade restrictions between countries, in the wake of Pandemics.

The notifiable or reportable communicable diseases, which are common to most of the countries are Cholera, Yellow fever, Anthrax, Leptospirosis, H1N1, Plague, AIDS, Botulism, Brucellosis, Diphtheria, Q-Fever, Malaria, Rabies, Chancroid,Pertussis, Smallpox, Leprosy, Syphilis, Poliomyelitis, Influenza( laboratory confirmed), Legionellosis, Rubella, Hepatitis, Invasive Meningococcal disease, Tuberculosis, Tularemia, Avian Influenza(bird flu), Hydatid disease, Yersinosis, Tetanus, Rickettsial diseases, Hepatitis C, Typhoid, Paratyphoid, Mumps, Cryptosporidiosis, Giardiasis, Coccidioidomycosis, Ehrlichiosis etc

Discuss It!