Infectious Diseases Remain A Burden To Healthcare Systems Worldwide

Main Category: Infectious Diseases / Bacteria / Viruses
Article Date: 18 Jul 2009 - 1:00 PDT

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Respiratory infectious diseases continue to be a huge and rising burden to health-care systems and societies worldwide. Published by Wiley-Blackwell, the latest issue of Respirology includes an invited review series focused on infectious pulmonary diseases.

The first paper entitled "Clinical Challenges in Managing Bronchiectasis" provides a review of the characteristics and clinical features of Bronchiectasis. The article also includes the often misdiagnosed and neglected treatment guidelines on how best to manage this common disease.

Lead author Kenneth Tsang from the LKS Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong said, "As symptoms of bronchiectasis are not specific, many patients are misdiagnosed as suffering from other inflammatory airway diseases such as asthma and COPD. Despite being prevalent in Asia-Pacific, bronchiectasis remains a long-neglected illness which should receive more research attention for better understanding of its aetiology, pathogenesis and treatment."

Another paper in the series, "Respiratory Infections: A Current and Future Threat", focuses on human pulmonary pathogens and environmental factors that contribute to the continued global burden of respiratory diseases.

The evolution and adaptation of human pathogens, in order to overcome immune responses, mean that new therapeutic and diagnostic approaches are necessary to combat viral threats. Coupled with clinical vigilance and strict infection control, the burden of pulmonary infection disease may then stand the chance of being reduced.

Source: Wiley - Blackwell