Infectious diseases can be traced back to the beginning of humanity. They are infections that get easily transmitted from one individual to the other. Their causes and victims are varied based on significant factors based within the society and ways of life. Regardless, some sections of society will suffer a greater risk of transmitting some infectious infections than the others.

Since the advent of cultures, new infections have stricken humanity with some getting eradicated through new discoveries and medical advancements. Infections that were once prevalent gradually become less transmitted to the point of eradication.

The primacy of the Medical sector in achieving a world free from fatal infectious diseases is of substantial significance. The most widely studied Infectious Diseases are Tuberculosis, Influenza, Hepatitis C and HIV/AIDS. This essay covers the most commonly transmitted infectious diseases and the particular minority groups to which they are prone.

            One of the most affected groups by infectious diseases is homeless. The most commonly transmitted Infectious disease is tuberculosis, with India being the country with the largest number of victims. The rate of transmission is relatively higher than that of the general population. The homeless are more exposed the causative agents than any other group. When one homeless individual transmits an infection the rate of spreading it to his homeless friends escalates during constant interactions.

The homeless also have little or no access to medical care. When one gets infected they spread it pretty fast before they receive treatment. This explains why the homeless suffer a greater risk of infection than the general population. They also live in very unhygienic conditions which favor the spread of infectious diseases and new epidemic outbreaks. In the United States, for instance, recent research indicates the rate of transmission of Infectious Diseases such as Hepatitis C among the homeless is fifty times more than the transmission rate in the general population. Evidently, the homeless are more at stake regarding the transmission of Infectious Diseases because of the greater exposure they experience to the causative agents through constant interactions with infected individuals and living in hygienically poor conditions.

            Another significant factor in the prevalence of Infectious Diseases is age. Based on research, some diseases like STDs and blood-borne diseases and are usually associated with the young. Likewise, some Infections are more common with the elderly than with the young. Some infections will more prevalent among the middle-aged folks than with the young and the elderly. Since the middle-aged are the active part of the population, they are more exposed to risk factors than any other group. The middle-aged spend more time in the cities where people from all walks of life interact. Consequently, with the high rate of transmission in urban areas due to overcrowding and mass interactions, infectious diseases are more prevalent among the middle-aged.

Such infections are Tuberculosis and Hepatitis C. For instance, in 2014 Tuberculosis and Hepatitis C collectively claimed four million lives in India. It is the highest toll to have ever occurred in a single country, with 90% being less than forty years old. The only Infectious Disease with a considerable prevalence among the elderly is Pertussis. Apparently, each age-group has aa certain vulnerability to different Infectious Diseases. Essentially, it all depends on one’s exposure to the risk factors.

            Evidently, Infectious Diseases are in every section of the society, but with varied measures of prevalence. The poor and the homeless are the most affected because of partly the greater exposure they experience to risk factors and partly inadequate health care. Cases of infections among the rich are minimal.

The prevalence of different Infectious Diseases depends on the age-group, with some being common among the young and others among the elderly. Every member of the society has a certain measure of vulnerability to different Infectious Diseases depending on their status in the community with some being more vulnerable that the others.