热带医学的起源与发展趋势

History and prospect of tropical medicine

热带医学（tropicalmedicine）是研究发生于热带或亚热带地区各种疾病的诊断、治疗、预防、控制和如何消灭这些疾病的一门综合性科学，主要Fh热带病学和热带卫生学两部分组成[1]。热带医学有着非常久远的历史，在19世纪末、20世纪初世界各国成立了专门的热带医学研究和教育的机构，热带医学得到较好的发展，热带病的预防、诊断、治疗取得了较好的效果，部分热带病得到有效的控制。随着全球气候变暖、_T业污染、人口增长、f】然疫源地的商业开发、旅游业的发展、抗生素和杀虫剂等大量使川，促使病原物种变异和传染源、媒介昆虫活动途迁范同扩大，新发币¨再发的热带病给人类提出了新的挑战，现就热带医学的起源和发展趋势做一评述。

Tropical medicine is a branch of medicine integrating preclinieal medicine, clinical medicine and preventive medicine, and investigating the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases in tropieal and subtropical regions, including tropical disease and tropical hygiene. Since climate is not the main reason why those infections remain endemic in tropical areas, there is a trend towards renaming this speciality as“Geo- graphic Medicine” or “Third World Medicine”. The rapid development of technology provided the direction and momentum Jbr the development of tropical medicine. At the same time, economic, environmental and social factors make the pathogen species variation, and infectious diseases become more complicated, prevention and treatment of tropical diseases have faced with new challenges in the future. From my point of view, the govern- ment should give more concerns and throw more money into the tropical medicine research and education. The new gene technology, geographic information system（GIS） and other advanced technology shouht be used in the diagnosis, treatment, surveillance and prevention of tropical medicine, so that people can face and control the new infectious diseases and emergent public health events. New vaccines and drugs should be developed for the prevention and treatment of new infection disease.