CLASSICAL ANTIQUITY (BEFORE 500 AD)

Top 10 Epidemic Diseases That Were Common in the Ancient World

 10. Chickenpox - An infxn caused by the varicella zoster virus, these days chickenpox is
usually considered a mild illness, common among children, though any cases of
chickenpox in teenagers or adults is still a matter of concern.

SPECIALTY: Infectious Disease

SYMPTOMS: Small, Itchy blisters, Headache, Loss of appetite, Tiredness, Fever
CAUSES: Varicella Zoster Virus
PREVENTION: Varicella Vaccine
MEDICATION : Calamine lotion,Paracetamol (Acetaminophen), Aciclovir
DEATHS : 6,400 per year (with shingles)

 9. Typhus - There was a time when catching typhus almost guaranteed death unless the
victim had a strong immunity and received proper nursing care.
SPECIALTY: Infectious Disease
SYMPTOMS: fever, headache, rash
CAUSES: bacterial infection spread by parasites
PREVENTION:
MEDICATION or TREATMENT: doxycycline
DEATHS :

 8. Influenza - May sound like a recent epidemic dse., but it has been affecting people for
thousands of years. The influenza virus was isolated as recently as in 1933 AD, but the
first cases of influenza among humans are said to be 6,000 years old.
SPECIALTY: Infectious Disease
SYMPTOMS: fever, runny nose, sore throat,muscle pains, headache, coughing,
sneezing, feeling tired.
CAUSES: influenza virus
PREVENTION: handwashing, surgical mask, influenza vaccine
MEDICATION or TREATMENT: antiviral drugs such as oseltamivir
DEATHS : 375,000 per year

 7. Typhoid - An infectious dse. Caused by the bacteria salmonella typhi, typhoid is

highly contagious and is spread easily through contaminated food and water supplies and
by close contact with infected people.
SPECIALTY: Infectious Disease
SYMPTOMS: fever abdominal pain, headache, rash
CAUSES: salmonella subsp. Entrica (spread by food or water contaminated with feces)
PREVENTION: typhoid vaccine, handwashing
 MEDICATION or TREATMENT: antibiotics
DEATHS :149,000 (2015)

 6. Malaria - Malaria has been infecting various species for around 130 million years.
The first documented descriptions of malaria date back to 2700 BC, when the symptoms
of an infection that later went on to be called malaria were first described in the ancient
medical text, Nei Ching.
SPECIALTY: Infectious Disease
SYMPTOMS: fever, vomiting, headache
CAUSES: plasmodium spread by mosquitos
PREVENTION: Mosquito nts insect repellent, osquito control, medications
MEDICATION or TREATMENT: antimalarial medication
DEATHS :445,000-731,000

 5. Measles - The first description of measles dates back to the 9th century AD when an
Arab physician first identified it as an infection that was different to smallpox. Even
though the exact origin of measles is unknown, measles epidemics struck ancient
settlements time and again.

 4. Tuberculosis - Is one of the most lethal communicable dse caused by the bacteria
mycobacterium tuberculosis, an organism whose existence predates even the first human
settlements.

SPECIALTY: Infectious Disease, pulmonology

SYMPTOMS: chronic cough, fever cough with bloody mucus, weight loss
CAUSES: mycobacterium tuberculosis
PREVENTION: screening those at high risk, treatment for those infected, vaccination
with bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG)
MEDICATION or TREATMENT: antibiotics
DEATHS : 1.6 million (2017)

 3. Yellow Fever - This dse is similar to malaria in the sense that it is also carried by
mosquitoes. The infected person gets a characteristic yellow tinge in the eyes and skin,
and a rather painful “black vomit” caused by excessive bleeding in the stomach.
 SPECIALTY: Infectious Disease
 SYMPTOMS: fever, chills, muscle pain, yellow skin
 CAUSES: yellow fever virus spread by mosquitoes
 PREVENTION:yellow fever vaccine
 MEDICATION or TREATMENT: supportive care
 DEATHS : 5,100 (2015)
 2. Smallpox - A highly contagious dse caused by the variola virus, smallpox is known to
kill at least 30 percent of all the people it infects.

SPECIALTY: Infectious Disease

SYMPTOMS: (early): fever, vomiting, mouth sores (later): fluid filled blisters w/c scab
over
CAUSES: variola major, variola minor (spread between people)
PREVENTION: smallpox vaccine
MEDICATION or TREATMENT: supportive care
DEATHS :

 1. Bubonic Plague - A deadly infxn caused by the bacteria Yersinia pestis, bubonic
plague is also referred to as the BLACK DEATH. For centuries, plague has been
synonymous with disaster for the people of Asia, Europe and Africa, claiming a
significant proportion of the populations of the biggest empires like the Roman Empire.
SPECIALTY: Infectious Disease, pulmonology
SYMPTOMS: fever, headaches, vomiting, swollen lymph nodes
CAUSES: Yesinia pestis spread by fleas
PREVENTION:
MEDICATION or TREATMENT: antibiotics: streptomycin,gentamicin, or
doxycycline
DEATHS : 10% mortality with treatment