Communicable Diseases Module: 42. Epidemic Investigation and Management

Study Session 42  Epidemic Investigation and Management

Introduction

In Study Sessions 40 and 41 you learned that one use of surveillance is to find out if there is an unusual increase in cases of any communicable diseases in your community, which could signal the start of an outbreak or epidemic. In this final study session, you will learn more about the different kinds of epidemics and how to investigate and manage them. A better understanding of epidemics will help you to detect an outbreak or epidemic of a communicable disease and report it immediately to the Health Centre and/or District Health Office. You are also expected to help the District Health Team in the control of any epidemics in your catchment area.

Learning Outcomes for Study Session 42

When you have studied this session, you should be able to:

42.1  Define and use correctly all of the key words printed in bold. (SAQs 42.1, 42.3 and 42.4)

42.2  Describe the different types of epidemics. (SAQs 42.1 and 42.3)

42.3  Describe the purpose of epidemic investigation. (SAQ 42.4)

42.4  Explain in outline the basic principles of epidemic management. (SAQs 42.2 and 42.4)

42.1  What is an outbreak and an epidemic?

If there is an increase in cases of a disease compared with the expected number, but it lasts for only a short time, or it occurs only in a limited area (e.g. in a few nearby households), the rise may be referred to as an outbreak. As you will remember from Study Session 1 of this Module, an epidemic is also an excess of cases compared with the number expected. However, an epidemic is more general than an outbreak, the increase in the number of cases continues far longer (possibly months or even years), and the cases are distributed across a wider area.

For example, it may be that during January to March there are normally fewer than 10 cases of tuberculosis (TB) in your kebele. If you found 30 cases of tuberculosis in a particular January, followed by 39 cases in February and 45 cases in March, then you would strongly suspect that there was an epidemic of TB in your community. You would then need to find out why TB had suddenly increased.

42.2  Types of epidemics

Epidemics are classified into different types according to the source of infection and modes of transmission.

Based on criteria such as this, epidemics are classified into three types:

• common source outbreaks
• propagated or progressive epidemics
• mixed epidemics.

We will look at each of them in turn.

42.2.1  Common source outbreaks

Common source outbreaks occur when the rise in cases of an infection occurs after a group of people all came into contact with the same unsafe source of infection (the common source), such as contaminated food or water. For example, imagine a wedding where food was prepared in the morning to serve to wedding guests in the evening. If the prepared food was left outside on a hot day under the sun until evening, bacteria might multiply in the food. If this food was served to the guests in the evening without reheating it thoroughly, many of the guests might fall ill from eating the contaminated food (Figure 42.1). This kind of epidemic is called a common source outbreak because the affected guests all ate the same contaminated food at the wedding.

Figure 42.1  Guests eating contaminated food during the wedding become ill with diarrhoea and vomiting; the most severely affected are too ill to get up.

A point source outbreak is a common source outbreak where the exposure period (e.g. the time at which the contaminated food was eaten) is short. This means that all cases who fall ill after eating the food (the common source) also have the same incubation period, i.e. the period between infection (eating the contaminated food) and the appearance of the first symptoms.

42.2.2  Propagated or progressive epidemics

Propagated or progressive epidemics occur when the infection spreads from person to person. The infectious agents causing the disease pass from one host to another, either directly from person to person (e.g. via hand shaking or kissing), or indirectly via vectors (e.g. mosquitoes in the case of malaria), or in water, food or another medium. The distribution of malaria cases is a good example of a propagated epidemic, because increased numbers of malaria cases occur again and again at different times. Propagated epidemics last longer than the common source outbreaks described above. This is because malaria will continue to spread in the community, as long as mosquitoes are present in the environment and there are people who carry the parasite.

42.2.3  Mixed epidemics

Mixed epidemics show characteristics of both common source and propagated epidemics. So a mixed epidemic can start with a common source and be followed by a propagated spread. Mixed epidemics are often caused by foodborne infectious agents.

The organism that causes typhoid (Salmonella typhi) can survive in sewage for 14 days and in water for up to seven days. Water polluted by faecal matter is therefore the main source of infection for typhoid. If the whole community drinks water from the same water source (Figure 42.3), which has been contaminated with Salmonella typhi, there will be a common source outbreak of typhoid fever. The epidemic may continue to spread through faecal matter passing from person to person, if the people in the affected community do not improve their standards of personal hygiene, or if the water is not treated and made safe to drink. This type of spread of typhoid is called a propagated epidemic of typhoid.

Figure 42.3  Drinking water collected from the same unsafe source can expose a whole community to waterborne infection and lead to a common source outbreak, followed by a propagated spread. (Photo: Basiro Davey)

42.3  Epidemic investigation

Epidemic investigation is a set of procedures used to identify the cause, i.e. the infectious agent, responsible for the disease. It is also used to identify the people affected, the circumstances and mode of spread of the disease, and other relevant factors involved in propagating the epidemic. This is especially important if the epidemic has unusual features, if it presents a significant threat to public health, and it is not self-limiting (i.e. it does not end spontaneously without professional intervention).

Epidemic investigation is a challenging task for health workers. The main purpose of epidemic investigation is to control the spread of the disease before it causes more deaths and illness. As a Health Extension Practitioner, the first action you should take is to confirm the existence of an epidemic. To do this, you need to know the average number of cases of that disease during this specific month in your community in previous years, so you can compare that number with the current number of cases. Is there an excess number of cases or deaths from this disease compared to the usual occurrence? If there really are excess cases, you should report your findings to the District Health Office immediately. The reporting formats were given in Study Session 41.

The next steps (Box 42.1) will be taken by the District Epidemic Management Team, which is composed of many different health professionals such as doctors, nurses, environmental experts and others. These steps include confirming the cause (the infectious agent involved), the number of people affected (the cases) and the modes of transmission of the infection from cases to new susceptible hosts.

42.4  Management of epidemics

Epidemic management activities include taking appropriate control measures, such as treating those who are ill to reduce the reservoir of infection, and providing health education to limit the transmission of the disease to others. Health professionals at higher levels will require your help in putting into taking any measures needed to control the spread of the disease, such as giving drugs to people in the community and providing health education.

As mentioned above, you may be involved in the management of an epidemic once it is confirmed by the health authorities. The type of control measures you need to implement depend on the type of infectious agent, how the disease is transmitted, and any other factors contributing to the disease. Generally, your control measures should target the infectious agent, the source of any infection, and the treatment of those who became ill. Remember, the source of infection could be humans or animals, or non-living things in the environment.

If you do not implement the correct control measures, the epidemic may continue to spread in your area. For example, if contaminated food is the source of an outbreak in your community, you will need to control the outbreak by teaching the community about food hygiene (Figure 42.4), so they are not exposed to contaminated food. If it is caused by contaminated water, you should educate them not to drink the water until it is treated with chlorine. If mosquito breeding sites are the source of a malaria epidemic, you will need to teach the community to clear the breeding sites for mosquitoes.

Figure 42.4  Teaching community members about preparing food safely can prevent an epidemic of foodborne infection.

This short discussion of epidemic investigation and management brings the Communicable Diseases Module to a close. We hope that after studying the 42 study sessions and completing your practical training attachments, you will feel confident to identify, treat, refer, prevent and control communicable diseases effectively in your community, and report cases accurately and at the proper time.

Summary of Study Session 42

In Study Session 42, you have learned that:

1. An epidemic is the occurrence of more cases of a disease than would be expected in the population at that period of time. An outbreak is an increase in cases for a short time in a limited area.
2. A common source outbreak is an epidemic which arises from a single source of infection, and where most people fall ill after the same incubation period.
3. A propagated epidemic occurs when the infection spreads from one person to another, e.g. through the air, via a vector, via contaminated food or water, or during unprotected sexual intercourse.
4. A mixed epidemic can start with a common source and be followed by a propagated spread.
5. An epidemic investigation is conducted to rapidly identify the cause of an outbreak or epidemic and to take effective actions to contain and prevent the spread of the disease.
6. Epidemic investigation and management involves team work. Your role as a Health Extension Practitioner is to report the occurrence of an epidemic, to mobilise and educate the community, and to assist the District Health authorities in carrying out control and prevention measures as required.

Self-Assessment Questions (SAQs) for Study Session 42

Now that you have completed this study session, you can assess how well you have achieved its Learning Outcomes by answering these questions. Write your answers in your Study Diary and discuss them with your Tutor at the next Study Support Meeting. You can check your answers with the Notes on the Self-Assessment Questions at the end of this Module.