Epidemic

Definition
An Epidemic (ep-i-dem-ic) is when you have a wide spread of illness or disease that spreads across a

region or certain areas (states, countries). We have seen many epidemics throughout history all around

the world, the most famous epidemic that impacted the United States was the Polio epidemic of the

1950’s1. With the widespread illness and disease that an epidemic has, they can turn into something

worldwide which we know as a pandemic.

Contents
1. Definitions
2. Spreading of an epidemic
3. Epidemics throughout history
3.1 First Recorded Epidemic
3.2 The Plague of London
4. Epidemics in the U.S.
4.1 HIV
5. Epidemics into Pandemics
6. Staying Safe

Spreading of an Epidemic
 The spread of an epidemic can

happen very suddenly and

rapidly, it does not happen from

person to person that makes it

an epidemic, it is the number of

cases that are found that

exceed the number of which

was predicted from pervious

illness and disease.[2] Spreading

of a disease or illness can be

extremely easy to transmit from person to person usually by the means of close to personal contact or

sometimes bacteria can be left on surfaces in high touch areas which can also cause disease to spread in

a much faster way. A very well documented epidemic that was noted after World War II was the

Hepatitis A outbreak that happened after the bombing of Hiroshima. Green onions that were planted

years after the atomic bomb was dropped, then shipped to the U.S. to restaurants in Pennsylvania in

which patrons of that restaurants were exposed to Hepatitis A, and the CDC (Centers for Disease

Control) was able to pinpoint the location of this spread using what they call the “point - source

outbreak” [2].

History of Epidemics

Epidemics have always been a part of human history and something that will not go away anytime soon,

we will see the history and first recorded epidemic in human history.

First Recorded Epidemic

The first recorded and documented epidemic in human history occurred in Athens (430 B.C.) the disease

first started in Libya and passed through Ethiopia and Egypt and finally made it way to Athens. “As much

as two-thirds of the population died. The symptoms included fever, thirst, bloody throat and tongue, red

skin, and lesions.”[3] Later it was found that the epidemic that spread rapidly through Athens was known

as Typhoid fever.

The Plague of London

In 1665 the plague of London created mass hysteria for its people, this plague caused “the deaths of 20

percent of London’s population.”[3] It was believed that animals such as cats and dogs that lived close to

ports were the cause of this mass spread and were soon slaughtered, later it was discovered that rats

were the cause for the mass spread for this plague.
Epidemics in the U.S.

HIV

Since the recognition of the disease HIV in the United States there have been more than 700,000 deaths

in results to this disease. “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated that more

than 1.1 million are currently living with HIV and about 15% of whom are unaware of their HIV

infection.”[4] HIV (human immunodeficient virus) attacks the body's immune system and can be

contracted through the means of bodily fluid (blood, semen etc.) and is highly contagious. This virus is

known to primarily be transmitted through sexual intercourse but more specially with men who have

intercourse with other men. “In 2017, more than 38,000 people were diagnosed with HIV in the United

States. The majority of these cases were among young black/African American and Hispanic/Latino men

who have sex with men.”[4] HIV spread has also been spread through drug use, people who do injectable

drugs such as Heroin have an increased chanced of contracting HIV if they share and reuse needles. “In

addition, there was high incidence of HIV among transgender individuals, high-risk heterosexuals, and

persons who inject drugs. This public health issue is also connected to the broader opioid crisis: 2015

marked the first time in 2 decades that the number of HIV cases attributed to drug injection

increased.”[4] Since the discovery and proper study of this disease there have been new medications and

treatments that have been created to halt the HIV epidemic and prevent the spread of this deadly

disease. “Furthermore, PrEP with a daily regimen of 2 oral antiretroviral drugs in a single pill has proven

to be highly effective in preventing HIV infection for individuals at high risk.”[4]

Ebola in West Africa

Ebola is an infectious disease that spreads via personal contact with human bodily fluids or being in

contact with contaminated surfaces. The Ebola outbreak that spread across West Africa was within
these three countries, Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. The study of this epidemic from 2014-2016 was

to answer the question on to how this disease was spreading so quickly through these few areas in West

Africa. “A total of 28,610 cases and 11,308 deaths were reported during the 2014-16 Ebola epidemic in

West Africa.”[5] It was found that the reason this disease spread so rapidly was because many people lack

certain sanitation standards as well as becoming in close contact with those already effected by the

disease therefore spreading through towns and villages. “A number of factors influenced the dynamics

of the 2014-16 Ebola outbreak including movement patterns often influenced by interventions, use of

quarantine for exposed individuals and unsafe funerals involving large numbers of people.”[5] The

findings from this study were very shocking, mostly due to the fact of the mass spread of this disease

was due to mass funerals that were held which then caused a wide spread of the disease infecting more

people at a high rate.

This graph shows the increase rate in which the

Ebola disease was spread. It shows a slow growth

rate and then a rapid jump in the infection rate. [5]

Epidemics into Pandemics

COVID-19
As all of us know, COVID-19 has been around for about 3 years now and has finally died down in the

sense of deaths and infection rates, but we still do see the occasional case pop up here and there. The

virus as we know was spread quite easily from person to person from close personal contact to touching

dirty surfaces. “A total of 95,314,517 COVID-19 cases have been reported in the United States as of

September 14,2022.”[6] COVID-19 from the start has shown from that start of the spread the force and

magnitude that it could spread, it took less than a year for the virus to spread across the world and turn

from a county wide epidemic into a worldwide pandemic and turned everything upside down causing

mass hysteria, death, and panic throughout nations. Thankfully, we were able to mask the pandemic and

bring it back to an epidemic due to the fast workings of vaccinations, in which millions have now

received to stop the spread of this virus. In the U.S. alone millions have already received full vaccination

status and that number is expected to increase, “As of September 14, 2022, 612.8 million vaccine doses

have been administered in the United States. Overall, about 263.4 million people or 79.3% of the total

U.S. population, have received at least one doses of vaccine.”[6]

Staying Safe
There are many things we

can do as a population that can keep us safe from the current epidemic that this country is facing as well

as prevent future spread of infectious diseases if that were to ever happen again. Here are a few tips on

how to keep yourself and the people around you safe.

 Wash hands with warm water regularly for more than a minute
  Practice social distancing with people who are unvaccinated

 Wear a face covering wherever it is possible

 Avoid large, crowded areas

 Get vaccinated, it is not a cure, but it will help prevent you from getting sick

 Sanitize areas that are considered high touch such as phones, tables, doors, etc.

 If you are to get sick, make sure to get tested to ensure you are not spreading illness to others

References

1. Robinson, D. (2020, March 24). The worst outbreaks in U.S. history. Healthline. Retrieved

September 18, 2022, from https://www.healthline.com/health/worst-disease-outbreaks-

history#yellow-fever

2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2012, May 18). Principles of epidemiology. Centers

for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved September 18, 2022, from

https://www.cdc.gov/csels/dsepd/ss1978/lesson1/section11.html

3. History.com Editors (2019, February 27). Pandemics that changed history. History.com.

Retrieved September 18, 2022, from https://www.history.com/topics/middle-ages/pandemics-

timeline#:~:text=430%20B.C.%3A%20Athens,as%20the%20Spartans%20laid%20siege.
4. Fauci, A. S., Redfield, R. R., Sigounas, G., Weahkee, M. S., & Giroir, B. P. (n.d.) Ending the HIV

Epidemic: A Plan for the United States. The Journal of American Medical Association, 321.

5. Ganyani, T., Roosa, K., Faes, C., Hens, N., & Chowell, G. (2018). Assessing the relationship

between epidemic growth scaling and epidemic size: The 2014-16 Ebola epidemic in West

Africa.

6. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (n.d.). Covid Data tracker Weekly Review. Centers

for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved September 21, 2022, from

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/covidview/index.html