Emerging and Re-Emerging Virus

Abstract

Infectious diseases remain a major cause of human and animal morbidity and mortality leading to significant
healthcare expenditure. However, enormous successes have been obtained against the control of major
epidemic diseases, such as malaria, plague, leprosy and cholera, in the past. The vast terrains and extreme
geo-climatic differences and uneven population distribution present unique patterns of distribution of viral
diseases. Dynamic interplay of biological, socio-cultural and ecological factors, together with novel aspects
of human-animal interphase, pose additional challenges with respect to the emergence of infectious diseases.
The important challenges faced in the control and prevention of emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases
range from understanding the impact of factors that are necessary for the emergence, to development of
strengthened surveillance systems that can mitigate human suffering and death. Viral pathogens are known to
cause outbreaks that have epidemic and pandemic potential which would result in severe range of mortality
and Health care expenditure on a scale depending on the pathogenicity of the virus.