Common Infectious Diseases

Infectious disease is a broad term used for several types of diseases. Some infections, such as the common cold or strep throat, are an expected part of life. On average, children get six to eight respiratory infections each year. Other infections, such as HIV/AIDS, require lifelong treatment.

Infectious diseases require different forms of treatment, depending on the type and severity of the disease. MultiCare’s infectious disease specialists have the expertise necessary to treat the most complex infections.

Types of infectious diseases

Infectious diseases generally fall into one of the following categories:

• Bacterial infections. Caused by single-celled organisms that multiply and include strep throat and tuberculosis
• Food-borne diseases. Often caused by bacteria, such as salmonella and E. coli
• Fungal infections. Caused by fungi, such as mildew, mold and yeast, and include blastomycosis, histoplasmosis and ringworm
• Insect-borne diseases — caused by bacteria, viruses or parasites and include Lyme disease (spread by ticks) and Saint Louis encephalitis and malaria (spread by mosquitos)
• Parasitic infections. Can spread through food, water, insects and many other ways and include Chagas disease, malaria, giardia and toxoplasmosis
• Tropical diseases. Infections, including cholera, Ebola, rotavirus and yellow fever, that are caused by bacteria and viruses prevalent in the tropics
• Viral infections. Caused by viruses, which contain genetic material and change, damage or kill your body’s cells, and include HIV/AIDS, mononucleosis and herpes

Treatment options

If you are concerned you or someone you love may have an infectious disease, an infectious disease specialist can let you know for sure. They can also recommend next steps for treatment, which is important because different types of infectious diseases need different forms of treatment. For example, bacterial infections respond to antibiotics, but viral infections do not.