Smallpox Smallpox, which is also called variola, comes in two forms. Variola major is the more deadly form of smallpox killing 30% of victims. Variola minor kills only 1% of victims but leaves the victims very sick. Smallpox is primarily a disease of children or young adults, but older people c...

In 1981, a new fatal, infectious disease was diagnosed--AIDS (Acquired Immuno-Deficiency Syndrome). It began in major cities, such as New York, Los Angeles, Miami, and San Francisco. People, mostly homosexual men and intravenous drug users, were dying from very rare lung infections or from a ca...

Rabies Rabies is a infection transmitted to humans and certain other mammals by the saliva of an infected animal. Infection is through a bite or by skin or mucous membrane contact with infected saliva. The period of the disorder can be as short as ten days or as long as one year; the ...