These horrifying new diseases are on the rise

From a new form of leprosy to deadly tick-borne diseases, these viruses and bacteria are the new – and sometimes deadly – kids on the block.

SUMMARY: New infectious diseases are on the rise globally. In North America, more than a dozen new viruses and pathogenic bacteria have appeared in the past 20 years.

If you’re a germaphobe, make sure you’re sitting down.

Back in 1999, a woman in California cleaned up rodent droppings in her home. Two weeks later, her liver started failing. Then she started to bleed internally — a hemorrhagic fever that would kill her. Eventually doctors found a new virus in her body, which very likely came from a rat…continue reading at National Public Radio.