As time passes by, it seems like we are destined to hear about, or even encounter, new viruses every day around the world. As soon as the news spread, we all become very concerned with our health as well as the well-being of our loved ones, for some viruses are very dangerous and hard to treat. With all the advancement of medical treatments, some viruses are still a definite right away death sentence, if they were ever caught. These viruses are tiny agents that cannot be seen by naked eyes, and often contagious.
The inside of any living cell is only where they have the ability to reproduce. They can affect any living creature whether human, animal, plant or even bacteria, which makes them devastatingly threatening to all forms of life. The list below features the 10 most dangerous viruses that are threatening our planet, check it out.
10 Ebola
The first reported case of Ebola was from Congo, Africa, and that is why it was called that way, as it was named after the Ebola river. What makes this virus very dangerous is the fact that there is no cure for it until today, and also because it is contagious.
Humans get infected by this virus through direct contact with secretions of the body. The symptoms of it starts off with severe headache and sore throat, and later the case escalates to major bleeding, both internally and externally.
9 HIV/AIDS
The AIDS also made its first appearance in Africa. When it has started to spread, anyone who caught it was already dead, for there was no cure for it back then. Today, fortunately, there are some drugs used for treatment, thanks to the advancement of medicine industry, but sadly not all countries have access to them, leaving the death rate relatively high. At this age, a lot of people are living with HIV, and since it is infectious, everyone around the patient should take the necessary precautions. However, this virus is still one of the devastating ones, because it works on utterly destroying the immune system, leaving the victim prone to many other infections and diseases. In other words, if this virus was ever caught and left without treatment, it would result in an unpleasant sequence of diseases.
8 Rabies
Rabies is a disease as old as time, has been around for so long. This virus is caught through the bites or scratches of infected animals, especially dogs and bats. If anyone has ever fallen as a victim of these dangerous bites, they should immediately head to the nearest hospital and get treatment through vaccination, otherwise the virus, within few days, will creep into the central nervous system, disrupting it completely and immediately sending the victim to death. Some people have argued that the symptoms of this virus make it so much similar to being turned into a zombie, because the bitten person, in some cases, can become insane and perform violent acts, and this actually explains its name since Rabies means Madness in Latin. Certainly killing stray dogs is never fun, but at least now you can see the local authorities viewpoint.
7 Yellow Fever
As many other viruses, the Yellow fever made its first appearance in Africa. It is considered as the big killer of all time, and it was commonly known as the black vomit. This virus is transmitted by a bite of a mosquito, considered as one of the life-threatening diseases, and although there is an effective vaccine for it, still more than 50% of its victims do not make it. The symptoms of this virus start from nausea, fever to pain in the muscles, and in extreme cases it escalates to major bleeding from mouth, nose, stomach, and even eyes.
6 Lassa
Lassa is a dangerously devastating virus carried by a species of rats called Mastomys, and they are originally located in West Africa. The dangerous part of this virus is the fact that it is airborne, you can catch it just by being present where any secretions of these rats are. It can spread from one human to another by close contact of bodily secretions. The signs this virus develops are pain in the chest, fever, facial swelling, and, in some cases, deafness. It is a deadly virus, but fortunately it can be treated with an antiviral drug at its early stages.
5 Smallpox
Here is one deadly virus that we cannot blame animals or insects for because it is carried by humans, and contagious for solely humans. The Smallpox has different types, but they all share almost the same symptoms: severe fever accompanied with fluid-filled pustules that completely cover the skin. It usually kills its victims, and the lucky ones who survived it were left with deep scars on their skins, and some got blinded. The good news is, this virus is no longer a threat at all.
4 Dengue Fever
Another virus to blame the mosquitos for, especially the ones in tropical areas; the Dengue Fever. This virus started from both Philippines and Thailand, and known as the break-bone fever because once it is caught, the victim feels severe pain in the muscles and bones and gets high fever. Other signs of this virus are nausea, diarrhea, internal bleeding and, in extreme cases, devastatingly low blood pressure which may lead to death. Bad news first, this virus has no vaccine against it, and the good news is that it is not infectious.
3 Hantavirus
Hantavirus is another airborne disease caused by rodent species, and known as Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome. The first reported case was in 1993 in the United States, but fortunately it cannot be spread through human beings, but that doesn’t make it any less dangerous, for it can cause deadly diseases as hemorrhagic fever that results in severe headache, fever, lung disease such as shortness of breath, and in extreme cases it might escalates to cardiovascular shock or am acute kidney failure.
2 Marburg
Marburg is deemed to be one of the deadliest viruses on planet, because there is no cure for it once it is caught. It is also infectious, and can be spread through contact with secretions of the body. This virus is genetically inherited, but it is so rare. The victims of it experience fever, massive internal and external bleeding and failure of multiple organs, which lead to death.
1 HCV
HCV is the Hepatitis C virus. Actually hepatitis is a name given to a number of diseases that affect the liver, starting from A until E, and among all of them C is considered the most dangerous. This virus is contagious; it can be transmitted through the blood, whether blood transfusion, transplantation of an organ, sharing a needle, and through sexual intercourse. A pregnant woman can also pass this virus to her baby, in case she is infected. The symptoms of this disease take years to show up, during which the liver can get severely damaged, subsequently leaving the liver prone to getting cancer.