Journal
JOURNAL OF FAMILY MEDICINE AND PRIMARY CARE
Volume 10, Issue 8, Pages 2745-2750Publisher
WOLTERS KLUWER MEDKNOW PUBLICATIONS
DOI: 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_2071_20
Keywords
MERS; SARS; Swine flu; viral pandemics; Western African Ebola virus; Zika virus
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
A pandemic is a widespread disease that affects a large population globally. There are many different viruses that can infect humans, with potential for even more undiscovered viruses to pose a threat in the future.
An epidemic that occurs worldwide, involving many countries and affecting a large population is called as a pandemic. The ongoing corona virus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has not only adversely affected the global healthcare infrastructure, but has significantly impacted world economy, socio-political and cultural environment. There are 219 different types of viruses, known at present to be able to infect human beings. This number is just a tip of the iceberg, with the possibility of a substantial pool of undiscovered human viruses and millions of other virus species (which affect plants and non-human animals) that can be potentially infectious to humans as well. Throughout human history there have been numerous pandemics and disease outbreaks that have not only led to huge loss of life, but also hindered economic growth and development. Therefore, in this review article we wanted to highlight major viral pandemics that have occurred in the last two decades, to understand factors contributing to their emergence, transmission and suggest ways to curb future outbreaks.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available