From Vector To Zoonotic: A Glossary For Infectious Diseases
The world of infectious diseases has more than a few words and phrases you might want to know more about. We've got definitions for 11 key terms.
epidemic
CDC Seeks Controversial New Quarantine Powers To Stop Outbreaks
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wants more flexibility in deciding whom to quarantine and why. But critics say the changes the agency has proposed raise civil liberties questions.
When People Ate People, A Strange Disease Emerged
For decades, a rare disease crawled across Papua New Guinea. When scientists realized what was behind kuru, it caught everyone by surprise. But similar diseases can still be transmitted through food.
A Permanent Fund That Could Help Fight Zika Exists, But It's Empty
Back in 1983, Congress authorized a public health emergency fund. But the pot of money was never very substantial and it hasn't been replenished. The fund now stands at $57,000.
Do You Know What 'Vector' And 'Endemic' Mean? We Can Help — Sort Of
When it comes to talking about infectious diseases, researchers have their own special jargon. But even they aren't always 100 percent sure of the definitions.
Awful Moments In Quarantine History: Remember Typhoid Mary?
Quarantines have been imposed on the sick and contagious for thousands of years. We look at the use — and abuse — of this strategy to stop the spread of disease.
A Virtual Outbreak Offers Hints Of Ebola's Future
As the Ebola outbreak rages in West Africa, it is also unfolding — in a virtual sense — inside the computers of scientists trying to predict how far the outbreak will spread and when it will end.