Disease pattern

Rickettsia can be stored as freeze-dried powders. In this form, they are easy to disperse. However, because they are living organisms and can be killed during the dispersal process there are limitations to the methods that can be used. They can also be stored and dispersed via infected vectors (e.g., lice, ticks). In most cases, large-scale attacks will be clandestine and only detected through epidemiological analysis of resulting disease patterns. Localized or small-scale attacks may take the form of "anthrax" letters. Even in these cases, without the inclusion of a threat the attack may go unnoticed until the disease appears in exposed individuals (e.g., the initial 2001 anthrax attack at American Media Inc., which claimed the life of Robert Stevens). 

Like the chapter in the fourth edition of this book, this chapter includes a short accoimt of the historical aspects and a short introduction to some of the newer disciplines. The main theme/objective of this chapter is to give an idea about the changing disease patterns, which may be reflected in the discovery process. 

Organic livestock production and animal disease patterns - an overview... 

A resurgence of interest in dietary fiber has been stimulated by epidemiological evidence of differences in colonic disease patterns between cultures with diets containing large quantities of fiber, and Western cultures having more highly refined diets. Many African countries, for example, are relatively free of diverticular disease, ulcerative colitis, hemorrhoids, polyps, and cancer of the colon Whereas most interest has focused on the beneficial role of dietary fiber, there is also concern that high fiber diets may cause disturbances in the absorption of nutrients such as minerals (see Mineral Nutrients) and vitamins. 

Systemic Effects. Diseases of the hematopoietic tissues have been reported in patients given repeated injections of radium-224. Anemia, panmyelophthisis, and chronic myeloid leukemia were seen in excess of the control levels in these cases (compared with a higher incidence of acute leukemia in the control group) (Wick et al. 1986). Anemia has also been reported in case studies of the radium dial painters (Martland 1931), but the disease patterns have not been clearly established (Sharpe 1974). 

Christophers, E. and Henseler, T., Contrasting disease patterns in psoriasis and atopic dermatitis. Arch. Dermatol. Res. 279 (Suppl), S48, 1987. 

The skeletal age, which is not necessarily identical with the calendar age of the individual, has an important impact on the fluorine uptake, because osteoporosis is a process that fundamentally influences the bone structure. The disease pattern becomes visible in material loss within both the trabecular and the compact bone structure. Furthermore, the mineral density even in a healthy individual is not uniform in compact bone, but is a function of bone stress at this skeletal position and is increased at the point where muscles and tendons are fixed. 

Bohme, M., Lannero, E., Wickman, M., Nordyall, S. L., and Wahlgren, C. F. 2002. Atopic dermatitis and concomitant disease patterns in children up to two years of age. Acta Derm Venerol 82 98-103. 

The Time Course of Recurrent Mood Disorders Periodic, Noisy and Chaotic Disease Patterns... 

The indications which justify such an approach are directly provided by the episode patterns. As described above, in specific parts of disease progression the disease episodes occur periodically, while they develop rather randomly before, with no exact bifurcation point in between. Accordingly, we do not expect the mechanism of episode generation to change completely when it goes from random to periodic disease episodes. We assume that this reflects disease-related alteration of the system dynamics and we expect that this also holds true for the transitions to chaotic disease patterns. 

A Computer Model of Disease Patterns in Affective Disorders... 

With appropriate parameter scaling (see [2, 3]) the system is in a healthy steady state with S = 0. However, with increasing S the system goes through different dynamic states, including all the clinically described disease pattern. This is illus-... 

While the above simulations describe how the disease pattern vary as a function of the disease state, the following simulations show that our model can also account for kindling phenomena and autonomous progression. This needs some model extensions which were made in reference to the above-mentioned assumption of episode sensitization which are assumed to be due to residues (memory traces) of previous disease episodes. For simplicity, and because the real mechanisms are unknown, we introduced an additional, positive feedback loop which is implemented exactly in the same way as the other feedback variables [4—7, 25]. The model now also includes a dynamic disease variable Sp (Fig. 7.4a). The specialities are that it only activates when a disease episode occurs (episode sensitization) and that it has long relaxation times (memory trace). 

Action Assist in establishing surveillance systems to monitor the general population and special high-risk population segments carry out field studies and investigations monitor injury and disease patterns and potential disease outbreaks and provide technical assistance and consultations on disease and injury prevention and precautions. 

How can early recognition be enhanced in community-based settings The approaches are essentially the same as for hospital-based clinicians. One component is a heightened awareness of potential bioterror agents by practitioners. A second component is increased attentiveness to unusual patterns of disease occurrence. A third component is use of a syndromic approach to clinical recognition of disease patterns. As with acute care clinicians, community-based clinicians must recognize that they may fill the role of first responders in a biological attack. 

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