Top 10 Most Lethal Diseases

In this modern world with modern technologies and techniques, life has been modified to a greater extent. The advance technologies, greater medical facilities and inventions of new methods of treatment contribute a lot in medical field and improving the life quality of the individuals but still the power of life is defeated by the fatal or lethal diseases. Human body is capable of doing extremely extraordinary functions but these functions become workless in front of these lethal biological armaments. With the improvement in quality of life, the quantity of life shows no guarantee when there is matter of these deadly diseases. With advance technologies and innovative researches many treatment aims are introduced but the deadly nature of these diseases is a bitter truth of life. Here is the list of top 10 most lethal diseases in the world.

This list will definitely resolve the conflicting question in minds that what are the top most lethal diseases and what are the factors that make them to be in this list. Know about their causes and sign symptoms and do preventive measurements as Prevention is better than Cure and also about their complications that make them more deadly.

10. Pneumonia

The most common lethal nosocomial infectious disease is Pneumonia. It is an inflammatory disease of the lungs and can be life threatening. It is more serious for older people above than 65, infants and children and the individuals with other health issues. Its common symptoms include fever, cough, chest pain and difficult in breathing. The treatment is according to underlying cause like pneumonia caused by bacteria is treated with antibiotics. It affects around 450 million individual each year worldwide and therefore resulting in 4 million deaths mostly in third world countries. William Osler titled pneumonia as “the captain of the men of death” in the 19th century but the advancement in medical field in the 20th century by advent of vaccines and antibiotic therapy the improvement has been seen. It is one of the principal causes of death in children under 5 years of age in all over the world.

9. Tuberculosis

Tuberculosis also known as TB or white plaque is a common infectious disease, that is lethal in many cases and is caused by mycobacterium tuberculosis. It is a contagious disease and is spread by sneezing, coughing and talking. It usually affects the lungs of the sufferer but can also affect the other parts of the body. If left untreated this disease kills more than 50% of the infected individuals. The typical symptoms of this disease include chronic cough, fever, blood with sputum, weight loss and night sweats. Its treatment is complicated that include administration of multiple antibiotics for a long duration of time. The prevention of this disease is confined to screening programs and proper vaccination. In 2010, according to estimation in developing countries there were 8.8 million new cases of this disease and 1.5 million deaths because of it. After HIV, it is the second leading cause of death from infectious diseases.

8. Diarrhea

The increase in frequency of intestines movement or the increase in the looseness of stool or both is known as diarrhea, gastroenteritis is its most common cause. It is characterized as one of the most noxious diseases in the third world countries. It can be either acute or chronic with different causes and treatments. Acute diarrhea has rapid onset, lasts for few days and is not long term is a most prevalent cause of death among young children and babies in developing countries. Chronic diarrhea that is referred as long term diarrhea is the second cause of death of children in developing nations. The complications of diarrhea include dehydration, electrolyte imbalance and anus irritation. The dehydration should be immediately treated with oral intake or by with intravenous fluids and further treatment of disease with medication. Diarrhea is the second most common cause of death of infants in all over the world, killing almost 2,195 children everyday that is more than malaria, measles and AIDS combine.

7. Tetanus

Tetanus is a disease that is caused by the bacterium Clostridium tetani as its spores are widespread in our environment. The neurotoxin produced by this bacterium in the absence of oxygen is responsible for the effects. The contaminated wound is the source of disease and can be prevented by proper vaccination. Tetanus is also known as locked jaws and therefore characterized by muscles spasms, initially in the muscles of jaw. With the progression in the disease the mild stimuli may provoke generalized seizures like activity. Its major complications include laryngospasm, fractures of bones and ultimately death unless supportive treatment is given. It is a medical emergency that immediate require hospitalization and immediate treatment with tetanus immune globulin, tetanus vaccine, antibiotics, wound management and dugs to control muscle spasm. Depending on the severity of disease the ventilator is also required for breathing.

6. Anthrax

It is an acute and life threatening infectious disease that is caused by bacterium Bacillus anthracis. It can affect both animals and humans, as human get infected by in contact with animals that are infected or their products. Anthrax terrorist attack has caused this disease to receive a great deal of attention. There are three types of anthrax; cutaneous anthrax, gastrointestinal anthrax and inhalation or pulmonary anthrax.

The inhalation of spores of this bacterium causes the most deadly type of anthrax. Its sign and symptoms vary according to the type of disease as boil or swelling of lymph nodes in case of cutaneous anthrax, nausea, vomiting, fever and bloody diarrhea in case of gastrointestinal anthrax whereas flu like symptoms and chest discomfort in case of pulmonary anthrax.With the progression of disease it causes fever, difficulty in breathing, meningitis and shock, its most fatal complication is hemorrhagic meningitis. Powerful antibiotics are available that aid in treating this disease, this disease can also prevented by vaccination and avoiding contact with affected animals and early detection and treatment is very important. If you are not taking treatment within 24 hours of inhalation then it is going to kill you by the third or fourth day.

5. Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever

Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever also termed as dengue vasculopathy is a severe and possibly lethal infectious disease that is caused by the species Aedes aegypti of mosquitoes. It is a life threatening condition in which the early symptoms are like dengue fever like fever, vomiting, headache, malaise, decreased appetite and joints or muscles aches but with the passage of time there are symptoms of bleeding, blood plasma leakage and low levels of platelets of blood or due to extremely low blood pressure the patient can go into dengue shock syndrome and that can lead to the death of the individual.

There is no specific treatment of this disease as it is caused by a virus so there is no known vaccine or cure, the only possible treatment is to treat the symptoms. With early diagnosis and intensive care, most of the patients show good prognosis whereas almost half of the untreated patients go into shock and do not survive. Approximately 50- 100 million people are infected from this disease, annually. Now a days, most of the Asian and Latin American countries are affected by this disease and therefore becoming a leading cause of hospitalization and death in that regions.

4. Ischemic Heart Disease

The most common cause of death in most of the Western countries is Ischemic Heart Disease. Heart is the pumping organ of the body, any malfunction in its activity can be extremely hazardous. In ischemic heart disease also known as coronary heart disease there is decreased blood supply to heart because of narrowing or blockage of the blood vessels due to plaque formation, therefore leading to death of the tissue and causing heart attack.

Ischemic heart disease is the commonest type of heart diseases and therefore a commonest cause of heart attack that cause sudden death too. Its sign and symptoms include acute chest pain and in case of heart attack difficulty in breathing and swelling of extremities due to weakened heart muscles. Smoking, diabetes, high cholesterol levels and hypertension are major risk factors for this disease. Its treatment includes improved life style, medication and surgery. Healthy life style plays a basic role in preventing this disease, regular exercise, healthy diet, avoid smoking and decreased obesity are leading factors in avoiding this disease. This disease affects individuals of any age but is more common in older age. It is a leading cause of death world widely as according to 2008 estimation it caused 7.3 million deaths and it causes approximately 600,000 deaths in the United Sates annually.

3. Cerebral Malaria

Malaria is one of the greatest killers in the world that causes almost one million deaths annually and its most serious and deadly form is cerebral malaria that affects the brain and damages it. The children are more prone to this lethal disease as compared to adults. It is constituted of the clinical manifestations of malaria caused by plasmodium falciparum and causes alterations in mental status and even coma. It is an intense form of brain disease that form ring like lesions in brain along with fever. The symptoms include altered consciousness with fever, neurological abnormalities and convulsions, and coma that persist for 24-72 hours.

If not treated on time it gets fatal and can lead to many other severe complications and death. It can be prevented by anti malarial chemotherapy and additional measures. According to World Health Organization nearly 300-500 million are become victim of this disease and causes more than one million deaths therefore its mortality ratio is very high as compare to other forms of malaria.

2. AIDS

Acquired Immunodeficiency disease is a very dangerous disease and is caused by HIV virus also known as human immunodeficiency virus. It is a disease of the weakening of the immune system of the body making the individual more vulnerable to diseases and infections including opportunistic infections and tumors and with the progression of disease the condition becomes more worsen.

This virus is transmitted by sexual intercourse, pregnancy and through blood transmission by sharing and reusing contaminated syringes. There is no treatment or vaccination of this disease but antiretroviral vaccination helps slowing down the disease’s course and reduces the risk of death but is expensive and has various side effects. It is considered a pandemic as it is widely spreading and is present over a large area in this world. The main causes of death from this disease are opportunist infections and tumors due to weakened immune system. As of 2012 epidemiology, approximately 35.3 million people were suffering from this disease world widely with 2.3 million new cases in that year and caused death of about 1.6 million people that is reduced as compared to 2.2 million in 2005.

1. Lung Cancer

Cancer itself is a very lethal disease but Lung Cancer is its most lethal type. It is the leading cause of deaths by cancers not only in the United States but also in all over the world. It is defined as a disease in which there is uncontrolled division of cells in lung tissues and if left undiagnosed or untreated this unwanted and uncontrolled division can metastasize to nearby tissues or other body parts. Cigarette smoking is the most common cause of this disease, while the other causes include passive smoking, exposure to asbestos, radon gas, air pollution or a combination of genetic factors.

The most common symptoms of this disease are cough, blood in cough, shortness of breath and weight loss. Its treatment methods include chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery or a combination of medical aids. Only 15 percent of lung cancer patients survive more than five years and causes approximately three millions deaths annually and around 35,000 people are died because of this lethal disease in United Kingdom each year.

source: listtop10s