Division of Bacterial Diseases (DBD)
Our Mission
The mission of the Division of Bacterial Diseases (DBD) is to prevent and control illness and death from vaccine-preventable and other respiratory bacterial diseases, in the U.S. and worldwide, through excellence in epidemiologic and laboratory science. This office within the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases plays a critical role in outbreak response, epidemiology, laboratory diagnosis and pathogen characterization, vaccine development, and control of respiratory and vaccine-preventable disease nationally and globally.
Our Priorities
- Improve detection, prevention, and control of respiratory and related invasive bacterial pathogens
- Accelerate development, introduction, and monitoring of bacterial vaccines domestically
- Accelerate development, introduction, and monitoring of bacterial vaccines globally
What We Do
The Division of Bacterial Diseases serves as the primary contact regarding bacterial respiratory and vaccine-preventable diseases. In addition to serving as experts in the area of bacterial respiratory and vaccine-preventable disease issues, we also:
- Assure the overall quality of the science relating to bacterial respiratory and vaccine-preventable disease
- Review, prepare, and coordinate congressional testimony and briefing documents related to these diseases, and analyze programmatic and policy implications of legislative proposals
- Advise CDC, OID, and NCIRD on policy matters concerning DBD programs and activities
- Provide statistical methodology and participate in outbreak investigations and disease reporting systems for ongoing surveillance
- Develop new methods or adapt existing methods for statistical applications in epidemiologic or laboratory research studies
- Provide statistical consultation for epidemiologic and laboratory research studies
DBD Organization Chart and Leadership Bios
- Organization Chart pdf icon[1 page] (text-only)txt icon Updated November 2020
- Leadership Bios
- Kimberley Fox, MD, MPH – Director
- Mark Biagioni, MPA – Associate Director for Program Management
- Allen Craig, MD, FAAFP – Chief, Respiratory Diseases Branch
- LeAnne Fox, MD – Chief, Meningitis and Vaccine Preventable Diseases Branch
Division Contact Information
Division Topics
- Active Bacterial Core surveillance (ABCs)
- Chlamydia pneumoniae
- Diphtheria / Corynebacterium diphtheriae
- Group A Streptococcal (GAS) Disease / group A Streptococcus
- Necrotizing fasciitis
- Post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis
- Strep throat
- Streptococcal toxic shock syndrome (STSS)
- Skin disease (impetigo, erysipelas, perianal strep, cellulitis)
- Scarlet fever
- Rheumatic fever
- Group B Streptococcal (GBS) Disease / group B Streptococcus
- Haemophilus influenzae disease (including Hib)
- Legionellosis / Legionella
- Legionnaires’ disease
- Pontiac fever
- Meningococcal disease / Neisseria meningitidis
- Mycoplasma pneumoniae
- Pertussis / Bordetella pertussis
- Pneumococcal disease / Streptococcus pneumoniae
- Pneumonia
- Psittacosis / Chlamydophila psittaci
- Tetanus / Clostridium tetani
- Unexplained Respiratory Disease Outbreaks (URDO)