The National Academies
What You Need To Know About Infectious Disease
What do you know about infectious disease?
Which of the following is NOT a type of infectious agent?
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
White blood cells are not a type of infectious agent. Part of the immune system, white blood cells fight infection rather than cause it.
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
White blood cells are not a type of infectious agent. Part of the immune system, white blood cells fight infection rather than cause it.
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Correct!
White blood cells are not a type of infectious agent. Part of the immune system, white blood cells fight infection rather than cause it.
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
White blood cells are not a type of infectious agent. Part of the immune system, white blood cells fight infection rather than cause it.
How long did it take the 2009 “swine flu” pandemic to spread to 30 countries?
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
The 2009 “swine flu” pandemic starkly illustrated the impact of globalization and air travel on the movement of infectious diseases—with the infection spreading to 30 countries within six weeks and to more than 190 countries and territories within months.
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Correct!
The 2009 “swine flu” pandemic starkly illustrated the impact of globalization and air travel on the movement of infectious diseases—with the infection spreading to 30 countries within six weeks and to more than 190 countries and territories within months.
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
The 2009 “swine flu” pandemic starkly illustrated the impact of globalization and air travel on the movement of infectious diseases—with the infection spreading to 30 countries within six weeks and to more than 190 countries and territories within months.
For each child who dies from pneumonia in an industrialized country, about how many children die from the infection in developing countries?
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
Life-saving vaccines and medications aren’t distributed equitably around the world; for each child who dies from pneumonia in an industrialized country, more than 2,000 children die from the infection in developing countries.
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
Life-saving vaccines and medications aren’t distributed equitably around the world; for each child who dies from pneumonia in an industrialized country, more than 2,000 children die from the infection in developing countries.
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
Life-saving vaccines and medications aren’t distributed equitably around the world; for each child who dies from pneumonia in an industrialized country, more than 2,000 children die from the infection in developing countries.
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Correct!
Life-saving vaccines and medications aren’t distributed equitably around the world; for each child who dies from pneumonia in an industrialized country, more than 2,000 children die from the infection in developing countries.
The human papillomavirus (HPV) causes about what percentage of cervical cancer cases?
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
The human papillomavirus (HPV) causes more than 90% of cervical cancer cases.
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
The human papillomavirus (HPV) causes more than 90% of cervical cancer cases.
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Correct!
The human papillomavirus (HPV) causes more than 90% of cervical cancer cases.
True or False: Washing your hands with soaps that have residue-producing antibacterial products, such as those containing the chemical triclosan, have been proven to confer health benefits.
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
Washing with regular soap is considered the most important way to prevent disease transmission. Routine consumer use of residue-producing antibacterial products has no added benefit and may actually contribute to antibiotic resistance.
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Correct!
Washing with regular soap is considered the most important way to prevent disease transmission. Routine consumer use of residue-producing antibacterial products has no added benefit and may actually contribute to antibiotic resistance.
True or False: Antibiotics work by introducing an agent that resembles a disease-causing microbe, thus stimulating the body's immune system to recognize it as foreign, destroy it, and "remember" it, so that it can more easily identify and destroy any similar, disease-causing microbes that it later encounters.
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
The above describes how vaccines work. Antibiotics work by either killing bacteria or stopping them from reproducing, allowing the body's natural defenses to eliminate the pathogens.
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Correct!
The above describes how vaccines work. Antibiotics work by either killing bacteria or stopping them from reproducing, allowing the body's natural defenses to eliminate the pathogens.
True or False: If you have a cold or the flu, taking antibiotics will help treat the infection.
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
Antibiotics only work on bacterial infections, not viral infections such as influenza and the common cold. In fact, inappropriate use and overuse of antibiotics contributes to the emergence of drug-resistant bacteria.
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Correct!
Antibiotics only work on bacterial infections, not viral infections such as influenza and the common cold. In fact, inappropriate use and overuse of antibiotics contributes to the emergence of drug-resistant bacteria.
What fraction of all deaths worldwide are caused by infectious disease?
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
About one quarter of all deaths worldwide are caused by infectious disease. More than two-thirds of the deaths in children under the age of five are caused by infectious disease.
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Correct!
About one quarter of all deaths worldwide are caused by infectious disease. More than two-thirds of the deaths in children under the age of five are caused by infectious disease.
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
About one quarter of all deaths worldwide are caused by infectious disease. More than two-thirds of the deaths in children under the age of five are caused by infectious disease.
True or False: Scientists predict that rising average temperatures in some regions will change the transmission dynamics and geographic range of cholera, malaria, dengue fever, and tick-borne diseases.
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Correct!
Scientists predict that rising average temperatures in some regions—a result of climate change—will change the transmission dynamics and geographic range of cholera, malaria, dengue fever, and tick-borne diseases.
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Sorry, that’s incorrect.
Scientists predict that rising average temperatures in some regions—a result of climate change—will change the transmission dynamics and geographic range of cholera, malaria, dengue fever, and tick-borne diseases.
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- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
A federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services that works with partners across the United States to ensure public health—through health promotion; prevention of disease, injury, and disability; and preparedness for new health threats.
