The new killer diseases
Subtitle: how the alarming evolution of mutant germs threatens us all
By: Elinor Levy and Mark Fischetti
Contributors: Fischetti, Mark
Edition: 1st ed.
Publisher: Crown Publishers
Published: 2003
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 311
ISBN-13: 9780609609941
Subjects: Drug resistance in microorganisms; Popular Works; Microbial Drug Resistance; Résistance aux médicaments; Maladies infectieuses; Disease Outbreaks; Ouvrages de vulgarisation; Micro-organismes; Emerging Communicable Diseases; Popular works; Communicable diseases
Description: The strange new disease SARS erupted apparently out of nowhere and has spread at an astonishing rate. Scary as SARS itself is, the disease is also a warning of many possible such outbreaks to come. Featuring the disturbing story of SARS-where it came from, what it is, and how to protect yourself from it-as well as those of many other recently evolved deadly scourges, The New Killer Diseases is a shocking call to arms. All around us-in our homes, workplaces, and public spaces-bacteria and viruses are evolving at a feverish rate, and our best defenses against them are in danger of being overwhelmed. The threat posed by emerging infectious diseases is as formidable as any challenge the human race has ever faced, and the evolutionary scales may be tipping in favor of the microbes.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Introduction : SARS, the newest killer -- -- ch. 1.; title: The case of Jeannie Brown -- -- ch. 2.; title: The bioterrorism challenge : meeting the threat -- -- ch. 3.; title: Our ailing pathogen alert system : germs from abroad -- -- ch. 4.; title: Mad cow and chronic wasting disease : the strange horrors of prions -- -- ch. 5.; title: E. coli gone bad : runaway bacterial evolution -- -- ch. 6.; title: Bacterial resistance : the dangers of antibiotics and hospitals -- -- ch. 7.; title: The next flu pandemic : rapidly mutating viruses -- -- ch. 8.; title: TB again : the fight-then-forget cycle -- -- ch. 9.; title: Ticking time bombs : chronic diseases combining forces -- -- ch. 10.; title: What we must do --; title: Notes on sources and further reading --; title: Acknowledgments --; title: Index.