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ISS
Istituto Superiore di Sanità
EpiCentro - Epidemiology for public health
Epidemiology for public health - ISS

An infectious disease is an illness caused by microbial agents that, after coming into contact with an individual, reproduce and disrupt normal body functioning: therefore, the disease results from the complex interplay between the foreign organism and the host’s immune system. Different types of germs may be responsible for infectious diseases, the most common being viruses, bacteria and fungi.

 

Publication date: 1 February 2021