Some diseases are spread almost exclusively by touch or through the skin or mucus membranes. These include Ebola, several parasitic diseases such as hookworm, strongyloides and scabies and some bacterial and fungal infections. Other diseases like COVID-19 and influenza are mainly transmitted via other routes but use touch as a secondary method of spread. This has implications for controlling these diseases, including the role of isolation and sanitation.
A lecture by Chris Whitty
The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website:
https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/touch-infections
Gresham College has been giving free public lectures since 1597. This tradition continues today with all of our five or so public lectures a week being made available for free download from our website. There are currently over 2,000 lectures free to access or download from the website.
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