Tonga

Potential Illnesses of Concern in Tonga


Diphtheria

Diphtheria is an infection caused by bacteria. It is extremely contagious and spreads very quickly, affecting the throat and the nasal passages. People who are most likely to contract diphtheria include elderly adults, young children under the age of five, and people with compromised immune systems. Fortunately, cases of diphtheria

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Hepatitis A

The term “hepatitis” refers to a family of diseases that result in liver inflammation and can be chronic and long-lasting. There are a few different types of hepatitis, all of which are viral diseases. These include Hepatitis A, B, and C. When the the liver is affected by these viruses, it

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Hepatitis B

Hepatitis B is part of a group of viruses that affect the liver and also include Hepatitis A and Hepatitis C. According to the World Health Organizaiton (WHO Fact Sheet), approximately two billion people around the world have the disease and nearly 600,000 die from complications of Hepatitis B every

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Tetanus

Description Tetanus, also known as lockjaw, is a serious infection that is caused by bacteria. It mainly affects the nervous system and can cause muscle contractions, most often in the muscles of the neck and jaw. This can make breathing extremely difficult. In some cases, it can even cause death.

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Typhoid

Typhoid (also known as Typhoid fever) is a widespread universal bacterial disease. It is transmitted when water or food is contaminated with an infected person’s feces and ingested by another person. It has various names, including slow fever, nervous fever, gastric fever, and abdominal typhus. The impact of the disease

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Yellow Fever

Yellow fever is an infection spread by mosquitoes. Many patients suffer jaundice, which is the yellow pigmentation of the skin; hence the name “yellow” fever. Yellow fever is responsible for 30 000 deaths annually, and approximately half of severely affected patients who do not receive treatment will die from yellow

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