These in-depth and informative books examine the nature of these diseases and the devastating effects they have had on populations throughout the world and throughout history. From the earliest infections like malaria to modern-day health crises such as AIDS, these fascinating titles explore the causes and the human toll inflicted by these epidemics and their role in the history of humankind.

Caused by a virus that can lie dormant within the body for as long as ten years, AIDS has proved to be one of the most difficult of modern diseases to cure. Effective medicines are very expensive. With millions of people in developing nations already infected and without the means to pay for treatment, AIDS is likely to become the scourge of the twenty-first century.