Pandemics and COVID-19

Basic consumer health information about widespread disease outbreaks and their associated threats, as well as information about disease management and advice about what to do when infectious diseases spread rapidly to many people.

Pandemic Preparedness: During a pandemic, governmental agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will play a key role in tracking the disease, assisting state health agencies, and distributing key personnel and medical supplies. Planning at the community level is also important to maintain vital services during a pandemic, while limiting the spread of the disease.

Pandemic A pandemic is an epidemic of an infectious disease that has spread across large portions of several continents or even worldwide. The English word comes from two Greek words that mean “all” and “people.” A noncontagious disease or condition that affects large numbers of people around the world on a steady basis (such as cancer, diabetes, or depression) is not a pandemic; the disorder must be an infectious disease to be defined as one.

Read entries on "Pandemics," "Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome," "Vaccination," "Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus," and "Globalization and Emerging Diseases." This book is a guide to information on infectious diseases that have either lately appeared for the first time in a population or have recently rapidly increased in incidence. The articles avoid medical jargon and use language that laypersons can understand while still providing authoritative, balanced information that addresses the pathogens that are causing and threaten to cause significant health crises.