Health protection: Surveillance and control of infectious diseases.
Although pneumonia and influenza are the only infectious diseases remaining among the 10 leading causes of death in this country, more than 290 million infectious illnesses occur annually--more than one for every person. These diseases have a significant impact on the population when measured in terms of increased social costs, including quality of life, decreased work productivity, and increased health care costs. During the next decade, no dramatic changes are anticipated in infectious disease trends; however, diseases may be newly recognized, epidemiologic patterns will be defined, antibiotic resistant patterns will change, and changing immigration patterns and refugee migrations may affect disease trends in the United States (e.g., tuberculosis). These factors will require the development and application of effective prevention methods, including disease surveillance, sanitation, casefinding and control, and development and use of vaccines and drugs. In addition, efforts to improve the rapidity and accuracy of diagnosis as well as the appropriateness of therapy are also important activities.
D003140:Communicable Disease Control / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends; D003141:Communicable Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology; D006284:Health Plan Implementation; D006285:Health Planning / Q000639:trends*; D006292:Health Priorities / Q000639:trends*; D006801:Humans; D009937:Organizational Objectives; D011159:Population Surveillance; D014481:United States; D014483:United States Dept. of Health and Human Services