Inside the Outbreaks - A Must for Epidemiologists

Inside the Outbreaks: The Elite Medical Detectives of the Epidemic Intelligence Service

Author: Mark Pendergrast
Pages: 418

We're adding this book to the Let's Talk Public Health reading list for all of the infectious disease and shoe-leather epidemiology enthusiasts out there.

The format of the book is refreshing. It's a series of vignettes, each summarizing the investigative adventures of some of the first Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) officers. Pendergrast does an excellent job keeping things succinct. He provides just enough background and contextual detail to make each vignette stand alone. Not only do you get a sense of where and when the EIS has had an impact, but you also learn about the political and cultural barriers, the historical context, the growth and evolution of the EIS and CDC and its programs as well as great background knowledge on the routes of transmission, incubation periods, symptoms and much more of several disease agents. You get to see some recurring characters at different points in their careers, which provides a glimpse of possible careers paths. You also get to hear about some intriguing medical mysteries. ​

I've included some of the highlights and insights that I earmarked from the first part of the book (pg. 1-106), The Grand Adventures of Dr. Langmuir's Boys (1951-1970):

• 1952 - The discovery that western equine encephalitis can be passed from pregnant mother to fetus (vertical transmission).
• 1952 - The establishment of the first poison control program in Chicago to combat high rates of unintentional poisoning in children.
• Late 1950s - Experiments showed that mists of bat saliva can transmit rabies if inhaled.
• Late 1960s - The term "brown lung" was coined for byssinosis (lung disease), which was affecting cotton mill employees due to prolonged exposure to cotton dust (exacerbated by poor working conditions). 
• 1967 - Whitening agents containing pentachlorophenol used to wash linens and diapers were being absorbed through the skin of infants and causing diaphoresis (excessive sweating) and convulsions.
• 1967/1968 - Oral rehydration therapy revolutionized cholera treatment, saving countless lives.
• 1968 - Hong Kong flu (H3H2) - the third flu pandemic - affected 1 in 5 Americans and killed thousands of elderly and/or immuno-compromised people.
• 1968 - The term "norovirus" was coined for the Norwalk agent, which emerged as the most prevalent cause of food and water-bourne illness.
• 1969 - The routine surveillance and control method emerged successful in eradicating malaria in eastern Nepal.
• 1969 - The term "Lassa fever" was coined for a deadly hemorrhagic fever discovered in the Lassa village of Nigeria. 

By: Monique Thornton, MPH

About the Author

Founder and CEO at Let's Talk Public Health. I'm a public health communication and marketing professional fusing creative writing, health communication, public health, and behavior change theory. Let's talk social and digital media, edutainment, product development, and digital health.