Many are the diseases that have affected humanity in a pandemic and / or massive way. The most recent of all, the virus that causes Covid-19 that has claimed the lives of millions of people, but the truth is that there have been many other diseases that have exceeded their numbers. Let’s get to know the most deadly and dangerous diseases in the world below.
The most deadly and dangerous diseases in the world
When talking about deadly diseases, it is clear that we all think now of Covid-19, although we also think of AIDS . But in the shadow of most media and virus killers, other scourges, such as tuberculosis or malaria , are also wreaking havoc in the four corners of the globe. Let’s get to know better the most deadly diseases in the world.
Covid-19: 3.93 million deaths, more than 180 million people infected
Appeared in Wuhan, China, on November 16, 2019, Covid-19 is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus . This disease, which has spread rapidly throughout the world, was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020 . The symptoms are similar to those of the flu (fever, dry cough, fatigue, sputum, muscles or joint pain, but also loss of taste and smell, hives, etc.). However, some patients may experience respiratory distress leading to emergency hospitalization . The rapid spread of the virus has forced countries to implement protection measures to avoid saturation in intensive care services (elimination of physical contact, use of a mask, implementation of quarantine, confinement of the population, closure of places open to the public , etc.).
With figures from May 2021, just over a year after the onset of the disease, more than 180 million infections linked to the virus have been recorded worldwide and almost 4 million deaths. Which makes it the deadliest infectious disease in the world today.
Cancer: 10 million deaths in 2020, 19 million new cases
Cancer, in all its forms, was the cause of nearly 10 million deaths in 2020 worldwide, according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Higher data than AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria combined . Cancer-related mortality has been increasing steadily for almost forty years. Thus, despite the numerous therapeutic advances and the efforts made in terms of screening and treatment, by 2030 the figure of 15 million deaths per year could be reached. The aging of the population, especially in Europe, is not the only explanation for the dangerous spread of cancer: Air pollution, lifestyle (tobacco, alcohol, etc.) and bad eating habits are also important factors to have. consider.
The AIDS virus: 38 million sick
In 2019, with 38 million people living with HIV, 690,000 people dead and 1.7 million new cases, HIV had already claimed nearly 32.7 million lives worldwide since its appearance in 1981, according to the Unaids.org site. Despite these frightening numbers, researchers agree that the AIDS epidemic has peaked and is now tending to stabilize . In fact, although there are still many people infected each year, greater access to triple therapies has allowed, in recent years, to reduce the number of deaths. And despite the fact that HIV is widespread in almost the entire surface of the world, the largest number of cases are concentrated in Africa, which currently has 25 million patients out of 38 registered worldwide.
Tuberculosis: 10 million new cases in 2019
An infectious disease transmitted by air , tuberculosis takes many forms (pulmonary, bone, lymph nodes, etc.) and above all , it can remain for life, in its so-called “latent” form, without the infected people actually getting sick. Therefore, the figures around this disease cannot currently be definitive, especially since the diagnosis is sometimes difficult to establish (symptoms similar to those of a strong flu). But for some regions of the world like Asia (60% of global cases) and sub-Saharan Africa, tuberculosis is very real and very deadly. Those affected are mainly children and young adults from developing countries.
Worst of all, tuberculosis is a curable disease, almost eradicated today in the richest countries. But despite support from international agencies and a recent improvement in care, particularly in China and India, Directly Observed Short-Term Treatment (DOTS) has yet to become sustainably established in the most affected countries. In particular, the rigor necessary to carry out the treatment, the lack of drugs or the insufficient follow-up of the patients.
Malaria: 229 million cases in 2019
Parasitic disease par excellence, malaria killed, according to the WHO, 409,000 people in the world in 2019 , mainly in sub-Saharan Africa. Transmitted by a mosquito, the female Anophele s, malaria is the leading cause of infant mortality in Africa . For this disease again, despite the action of NGOs and the WHO, which distribute tens of millions of mosquito nets, insecticides and diagnostic tools each year, there is still a long way to go before significantly reducing the number of cases.
Pneumonia: 2 million deaths per year
If, in the so-called “rich” countries, pneumonia is usually benign and rapidly curable with antibiotics, it remains, to this day , the leading cause of infant mortality in the world, causing the death of 2 million children under the age of 5 years every year, according to Unicef. This acute infection of a whole lobe of the lung is found in populations residing in urban areas exposed to pollution and living in poor hygienic conditions. Furthermore, malnutrition is an aggravating factor. Result: according to Unicef, a child under 5 years old dies of pneumonia every 39 seconds , mainly on the African continent.
