Bioterrorism: Are we ready for such health care emergencies (original) (raw)

Bioterrorism is a planned and deliberate use of pathogenic strains of microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, or their toxins to spread life-threatening diseases on a mass scale in order to devastate the population of an area. 1 Biological agents are easy to develop as weapons, are more lethal than chemical weapons, are less expensive and more difficult to detect than nuclear weapons. Diseases caused by biological agents are not only public health issue but also a problem of national security. Bioterrorism is a potential public health threat to India. The impact of a biological attack to our nation could be devastating. 2