Health Hygiene & Sanitation

Lesson 33 : Prevention And Control Of Infectious Diseases

Introduction

Every disease has certain weak points susceptible to attack. The disease can be controlled by identifying the weak points and breaking the weakest links in the chain of transmission. This requires sound and epidemiological knowledge of the disease its magnitude, distribution in time, place and person, multi-factorial causation, sources of infection and dynamics of transmission.
The choice of methods of control depends upon several factors:

• availability of proper tools and techniques,
• relative cost effectiveness,
• efficiency and acceptability

Removal or elimination of a single known essential link or the weakest link may be sufficient to control a disease, even if complete knowledge about the etiology of the disease is lacking.

Disease control involves all the measures designed to prevent or reduce the incidence, prevalence and consequences of disease. This includes community participation, political support and inter-sectoral co-ordination. Control measures should not be delayed because of incomplete or lack of accurate knowledge of the aetiologic agent.