Kang Laiyi (; 17 September 1936 – 5 October 2019) was a Chinese

epidemiologist Epidemiology is the study and analysis of the distribution (who, when, and where), patterns and determinants of health and disease conditions in a defined population, and application of this knowledge to prevent diseases. It is a cornerstone ...

. He was a professor, chief medical doctor and director at the Shanghai Center for Disease Control and Prevention. He worked in public health for almost six decades, including more than 30 years in

HIV/AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

epidemiology and management.

Biography

Kang was born on 17 September 1936 in

Fenghua Fenghua (; ) is a district (China), district of the city of Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, China. The district and its administrative hinterlands have a population of over 480,000. Fenghua is the hometown of two former president of the Republic of ...

Zhejiang ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = ( Hangzhounese) ( Ningbonese) (Wenzhounese) , image_skyline = 玉甑峰全貌 - panoramio.jpg , image_caption = View of the Yandang Mountains , image_map = Zhejiang i ...

, Republic of China. After graduating from Shanghai Medical College in 1957, he taught at Shanghai Medical Specialty School for five years. In August 1962, Kang transferred to the Shanghai Center for Disease Control and Prevention and worked there for the rest of his career. From 1984 to 1986, he received further training in epidemiology of infectious diseases at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

in Canada. After returning to China in December 1986, he worked in the prevention and treatment of the new disease

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

. He was appointed Director of the Shanghai AIDS Monitoring Center in October 1991 and Deputy Director of the Shanghai AIDS Research Center in 2001. Kang later served as Chief Medical Doctor and Director at the Shanghai Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and also taught as an

adjunct professor An adjunct professor is a type of academic appointment in higher education who does not work at the establishment full-time. The terms of this appointment and the job security of the tenure vary in different parts of the world, but the term is gen ...

at the University of Toronto. Kang died on 5 October 2019, aged 83.

Contributions

In the 1960s, Kang worked for years on

cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...

prevention and treatment in the outskirts of Shanghai. He also went to Kashgar,

Xinjiang Xinjiang,; , SASM/GNC romanization, SASM/GNC: Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Sinkiang, officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People' ...

to advise on the management of a cholera outbreak there. In 1970, Kang quickly detected and controlled an

anthrax Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Bacillus anthracis'' or ''Bacillus cereus'' biovar ''anthracis''. Infection typically occurs by contact with the skin, inhalation, or intestinal absorption. Symptom onset occurs between one ...

outbreak which killed a large number of mink in the Shanghai Zoo. When a major outbreak of

dermatitis Dermatitis is a term used for different types of skin inflammation, typically characterized by itchiness, redness and a rash. In cases of short duration, there may be small blisters, while in long-term cases the skin may become thickened ...

affected half a million people in Shanghai in 1972, Kang determined the cause to be caterpillars of the moth ''Euproctis similis xanthocampa'' and devised measures to control the disease. From 1978, Kang oversaw the creation of the hepatitis B vaccination program for newborns in Shanghai, the first such program in China. In 1988, when 290,000 people in Shanghai were infected with hepatitis A, Kang conducted research that determined the cause of the outbreak to be consumption of contaminated '' Anadara subcrenata'' clams. Starting in the late 1980s, Kang mainly focused on the epidemiology, intervention research, clinical evaluation, and management of

. In 1989, he established one of China's first labs to isolate and detect the virus. In 1992, he organized a major epidemiological study of

hepatitis C Hepatitis C is an infectious disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) that primarily affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. During the initial infection period, people often have mild or no symptoms. Early symptoms can include ...

and hepatitis E involving nearly 90,000 patients in four provinces. In 1998, he detected the first case of HIV/AIDS in a haemophiliac. During the 2003 SARS outbreak, Kang was a key member of the Shanghai SARS prevention group. Kang published more than 20 books and nearly 200 research papers. He received many national and municipal awards including the Distinguished Contribution Award of the National Science Congress, State Science and Technology Progress Award (Third Class), and the Shanghai Science and Technology Progress Award (First Class).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kang, Laiyi 1936 births 2019 deaths Chinese epidemiologists Scientists from Ningbo Physicians from Zhejiang Fudan University alumni University of Toronto alumni Academic staff of the University of Toronto Chinese expatriates in Canada