Physicians in most developed countries are at a great disadvantage when confronted with geographic and tropical diseases. They may be faced with prevention for patients who are outward bound or with diagnosis and treatment on their return. The practitioners' difficulties relate to inade quate teaching in medical schools and to the infrequency with which they are confronted with these exotic diseases. It is quite surprising to realize the extent of travel by Americans to areas where the tropical diseases abound: in 1979 there were 3 million trips by U. S. residents to Central and South America and almost 1 million to Africa and Asia. I Further, the influx from the tropics to the United States in 1978 involved 4. 5 million visitors and more than half a million immigrants. I The single most danger ous ofthese infections is malaria, which is now averaging about 500 cases yearly in the United States; it is important to realize that infection with one species of this organism (Plasmodium falciparum) can be lethal within a few days of the onset of fever. Highly contagious infections such as the newly discovered and extremely lethal Lassa and Ebola fevers may be imported to our shores, plus cholera, antibiotic-resistant bacillary dys entery, and amebic dysentery and liver abscess. Chronic worm infections such as schistosomiasis, although rarely lethal, may have severe conse 2 quences such as paraplegia or hematemesis.

Why are rainfall, carcinogens, and primary care physicians distributed unevenly over space? The fourth edition of the leading text in the field has been updated and reorganized to cover the latest developments in disease ecology and health promotion across the globe. The book accessibly introduces the core questions and perspectives of health and medical geography and presents cutting-edge techniques of mapping and spatial analysis. It explores the intersecting genetic, ecological, behavioral, cultural, and socioeconomic processes that underlie patterns of health and disease in particular places, including how new diseases and epidemics emerge. Geographic dimensions of health care access and service provision are addressed. More than 100 figures include 16 color plates; most are available as PowerPoint slides at the companion website. New to This Edition: *Chapters on the political ecology of health; emerging infectious diseases and landscape genetics; food, diet, and nutrition; and urban health. *Coverage of Middle East respiratory syndrome, Ebola, and Zika; impacts on health of global climate change; contaminated water crises in economically developed countries, including in Flint, Michigan; China's rapid industrial growth; and other timely topics. *Updated throughout with current data and concepts plus advances in GIS. Pedagogical Features: *End-of-chapter review questions and suggestions for further reading. *Section Introductions that describe each chapter. *"Quick Reviews"--within-chapter recaps of key concepts. *Bold-faced key terms and an end-of-book glossary.

"The many diseases that are endemic in most of the developing nations of the world (and that may also affect travelers to these regions) are, at world levels, the most important sources of morbidity that affect the entire human race. The change in morbidity patterns in the more developed nations should not be permitted to blind the more affluent countries to the implications of this simple statement. Thus, direct and useful guides are needed to assure efficient and economical diagnosis and treatment of those infections that are endemic to the less affluent two-thirds of the earth. "The algorithms in this book have been developed by Drs. Warren and Mahmoud, as the result of a systematic effort to produce such guides. The book is presented as another in the series "Studies in Infectious Disease Research" and is a most welcome addition, certain to supply a major and hitherto inadequately fulfilled need."--from the Foreword, by Edward H. Kass, M. D., Ph.D

This concise and practical guide describes infections in geographical areas and provides information on disease risk, concomitant infections (such as co-prevalence of HIV and tuberculosis) and emerging bacterial, viral and parasitic infections in a given geographical area of the world. Infectious Diseases: A Geographic Guide is divided according to United Nations world regions and addresses geographic disease profiles, presenting symptoms and incubation periods of infections. Each chapter contains a section on the coverage of the childhood vaccination programs in the countries included in that region. Chapters also include descriptions of infectious disease risk and problems with resistant bacteria in each region (e.g. antibiotic resistance in Salmonella infections in Southeast Asia). For the clinician, this book is a tool to generate differential diagnoses by considering the geographical history, as well the presenting symptoms and duration of illness. For the travel medicine specialist, this book provides information on risks of different diseases at various destinations and is particularly useful in advising long-term travelers.

The leading text in the field, this comprehensive book reviews geographic approaches to studying disease and public health issues across the globe. It presents cutting-edge techniques of spatial and social analysis and explores their relevance for understanding cultural and political ecology, disease systems, and health promotion. Essential topics include how new diseases emerge and epidemics develop in particular places; the intersecting influences on health of biological processes, culture, environment, and behavior; and the changing landscape of health care planning and service delivery. The text is richly illustrated with tables, figures, and maps, including 16 color plates.

A resource organized by body system lists the key herbal remedies available, their uses, and cautionary advice, in a book that includes full-color photos, a glossary and several thematic indexes.