ABSTRACT
Infectious diseases significantly impact the practice of surgery in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs). A surgeon operating in a tropical or remote setting requires a working knowledge of the locally endemic infectious diseases in order to care for these common conditions. Many of these diseases disproportionately affect people who are chronically undernourished or immunocompromised. Symptoms of infectious diseases can confound the presentation of even common surgical diagnoses and should be considered when evaluating a patient with abdominal pain, with lesions requiring biopsy, or undergoing evaluation for lymphadenopathy. The surgeon at the hospital or clinic must not only be able to surgically intervene on the manifestations of infectious diseases but must also be able to direct the perioperative monitoring and medical management.
