Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers PDF

Preface

Viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHFs) represent a diverse group of human and animal illnesses that may be caused by four distinct families of RNA viruses: the families Arenaviridae, Filoviridae, Bunyaviridae, and Flaviviridae. In general, the term "viral hemorrhagic fever" is used to describe a severe multisystem syndrome. Characteristically, the overall vascular system is damaged, and the body's ability to regulate itself is impaired. All types of VHFs are characterized by fever and bleeding disorders, and all can progress to high fever, shock, and death in many cases. While some VHF viruses can cause relatively mild illnesses, many of these viruses cause severe life-threatening disease. Depending on the infecting virus, fatality rates can reach up to 90%. VHFs may occur as isolated case(s), such as imported case(s) from endemic areas, or may cause devastating lethal outbreaks. While significant progress has been made over the last few years in dissecting the molecular biology and pathogenesis of the hemorrhagic viruses, there are currently no licensed vaccines or drugs available for most VHFs.

This book is primarily aimed at health-care workers, virologists, clinicians, biomedical researchers, microbiologists, and students of medicine or biology wishing to gain a rapid overview of the nature of these widely varying agents linked only by their propensity of causing diseases with hemorrhagic manifestation. We hope that this book will serve as a useful resource for all others interested in the field of VHFs.

An inclusive and comprehensive book such as this is clearly beyond the capacity of an individual's efforts. Therefore, we are fortunate and honored to have a large panel of internationally renowned virologists as chapter contributors, whose detailed knowledge on VHFs has greatly enriched this book.

We are thankful to Dr. Jens H. Kuhn, lead virologist at Integrated Research Facility at Fort Detrick (IRF-Frederick), Maryland, for his enormous support in giving final shape to this book. The professional support provided by Taylor & Francis Group/CRC Press greatly contributed to the final presentation of the book. Our appreciations extend to our families and parents for their understanding and support during the compilation of this book.