Noncommunicable vs
Communicable Diseases
What is the difference?
Non-Communicable Disease
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Essential Questions
What are non-communicable diseases?
Why should we be concerned about
them?
How can we protect ourselves from a
non-communicable disease?
Causes of Death Worldwide
*Adapted from The World Health Organization
Communicable Diseases 30%
Non-Communicable Diseases 60%
Other 10%
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Cardiovascular Diseases 17 million
Cancer’s 7.6 million
Respiratory Diseases 4.2 million
Diabetes 1.3 million
◦ These four groups of diseases account for around
80% of all NCD deaths.
NCD Deaths
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Non-communicable diseases (NCD’s) kill more than
36 million people each year.
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More than nine million of all deaths attributed to
non-communicable diseases (NCD’s) occur before
the age of 60; 90% of these “premature” deaths
occurred in low- and middle income countries.
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They share four risk factors: tobacco use, physical
inactivity, the harmful use of alcohol and unhealthy
diets.
Noncommunicable(NCD)
Chronic diseases,
 NOT passed from person to person.
 Long duration and generally slow progression
 Four main types of non communicable diseases:
cardiovascular diseases (like heart attacks and strokes)
cancers, chronic respiratory diseases (such as chronic
obstructed pulmonary disease (COPD), and asthma) and
diabetes.
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NCD’s already disproportionately affect low- and middleincome countries where nearly 80% of NCD deaths - 29
million – occur. They are the leading cause of death in all
regions except Africa, but current projections indicate that
by 2020 the largest increases will occur in Africa.
Noncommunicable Diseases
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Disease manifestations develop after
prolonged exposure to causative agents,
many associated with personal behaviors and
environmental factors.
Noncommunicable diseases cause pain,
disability, loss of income, disruption of family
stability, and an impaired quality of life.
Injuries, which have an acute onset, but may
be followed by prolonged recovery period
and impaired function, as well as chronic
mental diseases.
Who is at Risk for NCD
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All age groups and all regions are affected by
NCD’s.
NCD’s are often associated with older age
groups, but evidence shows that more than 9
million al all deaths attributed to NCD’s
occur before the age of 60.
Most of the NCD’s are attributed to
unhealthy diet, inactivity, exposure to
tobacco smoke or the effects of the harmful
use of alcohol.
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So what do these risk factors do to
a person’s body?
For one thing they can lead to four key
metabolic/physiological changes that increase
the risk for NCD’s:
 raised blood pressure,
 overweight/obesity,
 hyperglycemia (high blood glucose
levels),
 hyperlipidemia (high levels of fat in the
blood).
List of Non-communicable diseases
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cancer
diabetes
asthma
Alzheimers
Heart disease
fibromyalgia
hypertension
osteoporosis
autoimmune diseases
malnutrition
poisoning
hormonal conditions
Injuries
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trauma
fractures
mental disorders
What are the socio-economic
impacts of NCD’s?
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NCD’s threaten progress towards the United
Nations Millennium Development Goals.
Poverty is closely linked with NCD’s.
◦ The rapid rise in NCD’s is predicted to impede
poverty reduction initiatives in lower income
countries, particularly by forcing up household costs
associated with health care.
◦ Vulnerable and socially disadvantaged people get
sicker and die sooner than people of higher social
positions, especially because they are at greater risk
of being exposed to harmful products, such as
tobacco or unhealthy food, and have limited access
to health services
Cancer
Cancer is a non-communicable disease that affects all
ages. (CDC in 2011)
The three most common cancers among women are:
 breast,
 lung
 colorectal.
The three most common cancers among men are:
 prostate
 lung
 Colorectal
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* Lung cancer is at the top of the list for cancer deaths
in men and women.
Prevention and controls of NCD’s
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Focus on lessening the risk factors
1.
Low-cost solutions exist to risk factors (mainly tobacco use,
unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, and the harmful use of
alcohol) and map the epidemic of NCD’s and their risk factors
2.
Interventions that can be delivered through a primary healthcare approach to strengthen early detection and timely
treatment. Evidence shows that such interventions are
excellent economic investments because, if applied to patients
early, can reduce the need for more expensive treatment.
1.
Creating healthy public policies that promote NCD prevention
and control reorienting health systems to address the needs of
people with such diseases
Communicable Disease
A communicable disease is one that spreads from person to person
and is often described with adjectives like "contagious" or "infectious.”
Pathogens are microorganisms that cause disease
A communicable disease can travel as a Pathogen one of five ways:
 bacteria,
 virus,
 fungus
 protozoa
 rickettsia
The teen population is more likely than other age groups to spread
certain communicable diseases.
Awareness and education about these diseases can help teens and
their parents become more proactive in efforts to prevent their
spreading.
When does this occur?
When one of the 5 pathogens finds it’s way
into the body by:
 Direct contact
◦ Cut on your hand
◦ Someone next to you sneezes
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Indirect Contact
◦ You touch a door knob after someone with
the flu
Immune system is called into action
Lymphocytes-white blood cells that help fight pathogens
(disease causing bacterium, fungus, virus, or protozoan.)
 Lymphocytes multiply and fight pathogens when infected
 Two types:
◦ B-cells –produces antibodies to fight infection
 Specific (missing one: Diabetes)
 Killer
◦ Helper T Cell-signals B-cells to produce antibodies
 Memory
 Helper
 Suppressor
 Killer
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Macrophage
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Macrophages-white blood cell that
surrounds and destroys pathogens that
are weakened by the antibodies produced
by the B-cells.
Active Immunity
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Active Immunity-resistance of the disease
due to presence of antibodies
◦ Why do most people get the chicken pox
only once?
◦ Vaccination-substance containing dead or
weakened pathogens that is introduced into
the body by injection or orally
Passive Immunity
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Passive Immunity-results from introducing
antibodies into a person’s bloodstream.
◦ Mother to child
List of Communicable Diseases
Menningitis
 Strep Throat
 Tuberculosis
 Mononucleosis
 Hepatitis
 Influenza
 Common cold
 Chicken Pox
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Meningitis
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Meningitis is an inflammation of the brain and spinal cord
membranes.
Caused by a virus or bacteria,
symptoms of high fever, headache and stiff neck often
develop quickly and can cause serious complications if
not caught in time.
Meningitis can spread from person to person via
respiratory and throat secretions, which can occur by
coughing, sneezing or kissing
Although not as contagious as the flu, the Centers for
Disease Control recommends routine vaccination of
young people ages 11 to 18.
Immunnization
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Protection, pertaining to the production
of antibodies or lymphocytes that can
react with a specific antigen
Immunization State Law
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Minnesota statutes 1980 , Section 123.70
requires that all children who are enrolled in
a Minnesota school be immunized before
starting school.
These requirements can be waived only for
medical reasons or if you are conscientiously
opposed to a particular immunization.
Student will not be allowed to start school if
proof of immunization has not been
presented.
Public Health Record
Each student has a record that follows
them throughout their educational
experience.
 Information that is pertinent to the
student to ensure safety in school.
 Most schools have IHP’s (Individual Health
Plans) for students with chronic health
concerns. These include health plans,
modifications needed, person(s)
responsible and an evaluation process
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