COVID is top of mind for everyone, but it doesn’t make the list of infections with the highest death rate. Below is a list of human infectious disease case fatality rates (CFRs). A CFR is the proportion (percentage) of people diagnosed with a disease who die during the course of the disease. (Cf. mortality rate.) Values refer to optimally treated cases.
- Prion diseases, or transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE) = 100% case fatality rates
- Primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, Naegleria fowleri = ~100%
- Smallpox, Variola major, malignant (flat) or hemorrhagic types = ~95%
- Anthrax, inhalational = >93%
- Granulomatous amoebic encephalitis, Balamuthia mandrillaris & Acanthamoeba = ≥ 90%
- Ebola virus disease (for EBOV “strain” outbreaks only: formerly Zaire Ebola virus) = ~ 83%
- Lujo virus disease = 80%
- Marburg virus disease = ≤ 80%
- Ebola virus disease (for all types of ebolavirus outbreaks combined) = 60-65%
- Aspergillosis, invasive pulmonary form = 50-90%
