HEALTH INFORMATION

Diseases and Conditions

Information is often your best defense against diseases and conditions. Alberta Health and Wellness produces and distributes general and specific information about a variety of infectious diseases. More information is also available from your local health region, and on the publications and links page.
  1. BSE/vCJD
  2. Breast Cancer Screening Program
  3. Diabetes
  4. Foodborne Illnesses, Common
  5. Haemolytic Uraemic Syndrome (HUS)
  6. Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome
  7. Hepatitis
  8. HIV Infection/AIDS
  9. Influenza
  10. Lyme Disease
  11. Mumps
  12. MRSA (Community Associated)
  13. Norovirus / Norwalk-like virus
  14. Pandemic Influenza
  15. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)
  16. Sexually Transmitted Infections
  17. Tuberculosis or TB
  18. Vaccine preventable diseases
  19. West Nile Virus

BSE / vCJD

Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) is a transmissible, neurodegenerative, fatal brain disease of cattle. The disease has an incubation period of four to five years, but ultimately is fatal for cattle within weeks to months of its onset. BSE first came to the attention of the scientific community in November 1986 in the United Kingdom (UK). Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (TSEs) are diseases characterized by spongy degeneration of the brain with severe and fatal neurological signs and symptoms. BSE is one of several different forms of transmissible brain disease affecting a number of animal species.

While several human TSEs exist, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is the prototype human TSE. Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) is strongly linked to exposure, probably through food, to BSE.

Other Resources:

Breast cancer screening program

A provincial breast cancer screening program was introduced in 2004 to reduce the breast cancer death rate in Alberta by up to 30 per cent.

Diabetes

Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is a serious chronic condition that impedes the production and/or proper use of insulin, a hormone vital to normal metabolism. Although there is no cure for diabetes it can be managed to avoid the development of complications such as: limb amputation, blindness and kidney disease.

Type 1 Diabetes

Type 1 diabetes usually occurs in childhood and accounts for five to 10 per cent of all diagnosed cases of diabetes. Type 1 is not preventable. Individuals with type 1 diabetes manage their condition with insulin, diet, exercise and drugs. Individuals living with type 1 diabetes are at greater risk of long-term complications such as limb amputation, blindness, kidney failure, heart disease, stroke and premature death.

Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes affects individuals usually after the age of 40, but it can occur at an earlier age. It accounts for 90–95 per cent of all diagnosed cases of diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is preventable. Type 2 diabetes can be prevented or delayed by modifying two known risk factors – obesity and physical inactivity. Physical inactivity and unhealthy eating lead to obesity, and play a major role in the onset and progression of type 2 diabetes.

About a third of adults with type 2 diabetes are unaware that they have the condition, which without treatment, puts them at a greater risk of long-term complications such as limb amputation, blindness, kidney failure, heart disease, stroke and premature death.

In 2005, approximately 130,000 Albertans had been diagnosed with diabetes. Every month almost 1,000 new cases are added to that total.

Initiatives under the Alberta Diabetes Strategy

Alberta Health and Wellness (AHW) has formed a number of partnerships and funded initiatives/programs under the 10-year Alberta Diabetes Strategy to address diabetes:

  • AHW, in partnership with the Canadian Diabetes Association, disseminated province wide type 2 diabetes prevention messages in 2004-2006.
  • The Mobile Diabetes Screening Initiative, led by the University of Alberta, utilizes a team of health professionals who visit off-reserve Aboriginal and northern communities to screen individuals for diabetes and its complications. Since 2003, the team has visited 19 communities.
  • The Alberta Monitoring for Health (AMFH) Program, administered by the Canadian Diabetes Association, provides support to assist in the purchase of some diabetes supplies for low income Albertans without insurance.
  • The Alberta Diabetes Surveillance System Project, a five-year project led by the Institute of Health Economics, will facilitate dissemination of diabetes surveillance information (e.g. incidence, prevalence and service utilization) to regional health authorities and other stakeholders. The first of three, bi-annual Alberta Diabetes Atlases will be published in early 2007.
  • The Centre for Health Promotion Studies (CHPS), University of Alberta started in November 2004 the Healthy Alberta Communities Project, Prevention of Type 2 Diabetes and Other Chronic Diseases (cancer and cardiovascular), to change diet and physical activity at an individual and community level (Edmonton city center communities, Bonnyville/St. Paul and Medicine Hat). The project is part of the demonstration project for the World Health Organization’s Countrywide Integrated Non-Communicable Disease Intervention (CINDI), which involves internationally recognized researchers on obesity, healthy living, and chronic disease prevention.

Other Information

Back to top

Foodborne illnesses

Hamburger disease, dysentery, salmonella, food poisoning and several other diseases are commonly caused by ingesting unsanitary food or beverages.

Common foodborne illnesses include bacterial, viral and parasitic varieties, including:

  • Campylobacter Enteritis;
  • Clostridium Perfringens;
  • Haemorraghic Colitis;
  • Listeriosis;
  • Salmonellosis;
  • Shigellosis;
  • Staphylococcal Food Poisoning;
  • Amoebiasis;
  • Giardiasis;
  • Hepatitis A

Note, in Alberta, private pot luck events (i.e. family gatherings, private gatherings of club members/co-workers and invited guests etc.) do not require a license or permit. However, pot luck events that are open to the general public fall under the Alberta Food Regulations. While these temporary events do not require a food permit they are subject to the policies of the health region in which they are held.

Listeria

Listeria monocytogenes (commonly called Listeria) is a type of bacterium often found in food and elsewhere in nature. It can cause a rare but serious disease called listeriosis, especially among pregnant women, the elderly or individuals with a weakened immune system. In serious cases it can lead to brain infection and even death. (source: Health Canada)

More information

Haemolytic Uraemic Syndrome (HUS)

HUS is a disorder characterized by thrombocytopenia, microangiopathic haemololytic anaemia (anaemia secondary to red blood cell fragmentation) and renal (kidney) failure. About 90 per cent of HUS cases are caused by a certain group of bacteria known as verocytotoxin-producing E.coli (VTEC). E.coli infection is a common cause of food poisoning and can be acquired from foods such as unpasteurised milk or uncooked meat. It can also spread from person to person.

Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome

Hantavirus is carried by some mice and may be transmitted through contact with their droppings. Most cases occur in the spring during cleaning when people may breathe in air borne particles. Early symptoms are similar to the flu, but can quickly develop into severe breathing problems and in some cases hantavirus infection can be fatal.

Hepatitis

Hepatitis A, B, and C are three different viruses; each virus causes a distinct liver disease.

  1. Hepatitis A is usually caused by ingesting food or drinks that may have been contaminated with fecal matter.
  2. Hepatitis B is transmitted through an exchange of blood or bodily fluids. People can carry the hepatitis virus without any symptoms.
  3. Hepatitis C is spread through exchange of blood, often by sharing needles or other injection equipment.

HIV infection / AIDS

The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) weakens the immune system. When the immune system is damaged beyond repair, infections and cancers overwhelm the body, resulting in the final stage of HIV infection, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS).

More information

Influenza

Influenza is a highly contagious illness caused by a virus. As with many other viral illnesses, there is no cure for influenza at the present time. While the influenza can be mild in some people, in others it can be very serious – contributing to the development of serious bacterial infections, such as pneumonia. Influenza can even result in death in elderly people or people weakened by other medical conditions. Of all the deaths caused by influenza, most are in the over 65 age group.

Lyme Disease

Lyme disease is a debilitating disease of humans, wildlife, and domestic animals. It is caused by a bacterium and usually is transmitted by ticks. If left untreated the disease can cause serious neurological and muscle problems.

Mumps

Mumps is a disease that causes fever, headache and swollen glands around the jaw. Sometimes mumps causes inflammation of the spinal cord and covering of the brain (meningitis) but usually this does not cause permanent damage. In rare cases a child’s brain becomes severely inflamed (encephalitis). Mumps can also cause deafness.

About one out of four men who get mumps have painfully swollen testicles that may lead to sterility in rare cases. For one out of 10 women who get mumps, the ovaries will be infected and painful.

Alberta’s mumps outbreak

An outbreak of mumps cases is occuring in Alberta, primarily among post-secondary students. The majority of these cases have occurred among young people age 17 to 26 years.

  • People in this age group received only one dose of the mumps vaccine when they were children. Over the years, the single vaccination may wear off, leaving the individual vulnerable to the infection. A second dose of the MMR vaccine is recommended for this age group.

In November 2007, Alberta Health and Wellness and the health regions began offering free mumps immunizations to students and staff of the province’s post-secondary institutions who were born in 1970 or later. In phase two of the campaign, the vaccine will also be made available free of charge to young adults provincewide, born between 1980 and 1990.

  • People under 17 years of age do not need to be immunized as they have already received the second vaccine as a child.
  • People born in Canada before 1970 and those with a history of mumps are considered immune.

Mumps Clinics

As of May 2008, the mumps immunization program for Albertans born 1980 to 1990 has resumed in all of the province’s health regions.

  • To make an appointment, or for information on clinic schedules, contact your local public health unit.
  • See the mumps immunization promotion posters: Basketballs and Jill. (Used and modified with permission from the Government of Nova Scotia)

Clinic information

For more information on the location and times of the clinics in your area, call Health Link Alberta:

  • In Calgary, 403-943-5465;
  • In Edmonton, 780-408-5465;
  • Outside Edmonton and Calgary, 1-866-408-5465 (toll-free); or
  • Contact your local health region.

Community Associated MRSA

Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) is the term for Staphylococcus aureus bacteria that have become resistant to some antibiotics.

Norovirus / Norwalk-like virus

Norwalk-like viruses are a common cause of non-bacterial outbreaks of gastroenteritis. Viral gastroenteritis, often referred to as ‘winter vomiting disease’ or “stomach flu”, is a common illness. It should not be confused with influenza, which is commonly referred to as the “flu”.

Pandemic Influenza

Annual strains of influenza (flu) virus circulate throughout the world, often causing local outbreaks and regional epidemics. However, three to four times a century, a radical change will occur in the genetic material of the influenza A virus and a new subtype of the virus will suddenly appear. Everyone will be susceptible to infection with the new strain, and if the virus is easily spread from person to person, it will spread rapidly around the world. A global epidemic, called a pandemic, will result. Experts predict an influenza pandemic is likely within the next five to ten years.

Back to top

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)

SARS is a form of atypical pneumonia that first appeared in S.E. Asia, and has been under investigation worldwide since the end of February 2003.

Sexually transmitted diseases or infections (STD or STI)

In Canada some of the highest rates and increases in STIs are in young people 15 to 24 years of age. If you are having sex, or thinking about having sex, you need to know how to avoid sexually transmitted infections.

  • STDs or STIs include Gonorrhea, Chlamydia, Syphilis, HIV Infections/ AIDS, Herpes, Vaginitis, Venereal Warts, Crabs, Scabies, and Hepatitis B.

For more information, call the STI/HIV Information Line at 1-800-772-2437, to speak to a nurse during normal business hours.

Tuberculosis or TB

Tuberculosis (TB) is caused by a bacterium called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. TB usually attacks the lungs, but can also affect other parts of the body such as the lymph nodes.

TB is spread when someone with infectious TB disease coughs, sending TB bacteria into the air. Another person can then breathe the bacteria into his/her lungs. This person's immune system may kill the TB germs. If the immune system doesn't kill the TB bacteria, the bacteria can remain alive but inactive in the body. This is called TB infection. A person with TB infection is not sick and cannot spread TB to others.

People with TB infection may progress to TB disease if their immune system weakens. A person with TB disease feels sick and may infect others. TB disease can be cured with antibiotics. (Description from Public Health Agency website.)

Vaccine preventable diseases

Vaccines are successful in decreasing the incidence of disease. Many of the once common and deadly vaccine-preventable diseases are now controlled and covered in the comprehensive Alberta Immunization Program. These include: Chickenpox, Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis, Polio, Haemophilus Influenza type b, Hepatitis B, Measles, Mumps, Rubella, Pneumococcal Disease and Meningococcal Disease.

West Nile Virus

West Nile virus can be transmitted to humans primarily through the bite of an infected mosquito. Severe illness associated with the virus is rare, but can affect individuals of any age. The risk of severe illness increases with age, but everyone can take some simple steps to protect themselves.

Back to top