Ebola virus outbreak

retro:electro

Jake1 wrote: »

people are just discussing the outbreak, I think we are all quite chill in fairness. havent seen anyone post that they are bugging out just yet

personally, Im interested in the story, but Im not freaking out ( not yet , anyway)

I'm not saying people here need to chill out, I'm mainly talking about the media and the absolute scaremongering that they're doing. It's crazy.

Nesta99

anna080 wrote: »

If caught in time all you need is to be hydrated and your body will fight it naturally.

This will maximise chances for survival by managing DIC but mortality is still quite high. We have all been measured up for protective clothing (NHS) just in case but ultimately general hygiene like hand washing, general barriers used while care is being given, isolating lab testing and proper cleaning of equipment goes a long way. One of the most problmatic issues in West Africa are buriel rituals, Close contcat with ebola infected deceased in say linen sheets can continue the spread.

ceadaoin.

snubbleste wrote: »

Nigeria now has eight suspected ebola cases and one confirmed case.

Bear in mind, Sawyer arrived in Lagos on 20 July

I'm sure I read that on average, each person infected with ebola will only infect one other person. That number seems very high. At least 3 are health care workers, maybe they all are I'm not sure, so presumably they would have been taking precautions?

Nesta99

Hmm! Between incubation periods of say 2-3 weeks and a lack of basic resources its very possible that healthcare workers could be exposed. Having never worked in any African countries I am only speculating but i doubt there are specialised isolation units. A lack of awareness among the locals also who could turn up to any already stretched clinic are likely to be treated as best as possible due to the duty of care from the medical staff. Maybe exposure occured before the pathogen was identified. As I touched on earlier, very similar to the European plague, superstition in these places is a hinderence as the people look to 'alternative' reasons for the outbreak.

FullblownRose

What about Lauric Acid. Is that used in Ebola treatment? It seems to be effective againsst RNA virus.

Hoop66

I got it in Zaire and it made me ill
Now there aint no cure and there aint no pill
For Ebola
E-Bo-L-A Bola

miss tickle

Nesta99 wrote: »

This will maximise chances for survival by managing DIC but mortality is still quite high. We have all been measured up for protective clothing (NHS) just in case but ultimately general hygiene like hand washing, general barriers used while care is being given, isolating lab testing and proper cleaning of equipment goes a long way. One of the most problmatic issues in West Africa are buriel rituals, Close contcat with ebola infected deceased in say linen sheets can continue the spread.

Well while the NHS is taking precautions to protect their population, this is how the Liberian Government is disposing of infected bodies,

http://www.liberianobserver.com/news/ebola-corpses-%E2%80%98dumped%E2%80%99-wetlands,

Against the backdrop of the Liberian government’s announcement that it would “consider cremating” (burning) the corpses of those who have died from the deadly Ebola virus, the burial team from the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (MOH/SW) on Saturday dumped at least 45 bodies in Kissi Camp, near the Kpeh-kpeh Town Community, Upper Johnsonville, just northwest of the City of Paynesville.
Guarded by a heavily armed platoon of the Liberian Army as well as Police Support Unit (PSU) officers from the Liberia National Police, two mini trucks conveyed the corpses to the west bank of the Kpanwein River to be dropped off in mass graves dug by a hired yellow machine.
The Kpanwein River connects the Kpeh-Kpeh Town Community to Whein Town in the east and Chicken Soup Factory on Somalia Drive in the west, as well as Upper and Lower Johnsonville and many other communities.
Since the first truckload of corpses arrived Saturday, residents of Johnsonville have vehemently rejected the use of their community to dispose of the bodies. According to Kpeh-Kpeh Town Chief Joseph S. Karway, the community's main concern is that the plot of land where the graves have been dug is a wetland on the bank of a river that is a source of water for many surrounding communities. They fear that their wells – from which they get water for drinking and domestic use – will get contaminated, exposing them to other diseases.

ffs, its almost like they are trying to spread it as widely as possible, no wonder the locals are up in arms.

The One Who Knocks

Great article by the guardian:

A deadly disease is set to hit the shores of the US, UK and much of the rest of the northern hemisphere in the coming months. It will swamp our hospitals, lay millions low and by this time next year between 250,000 and 500,000 worldwide will be dead, thousands of them in the US and Britain.

Despite the best efforts of the medical profession, there’s no reliable cure, and no available vaccine offers effective protection for longer than a few months at a time.

If you’ve been paying attention to recent, terrifying headlines, you may assume the illness is the Ebola virus. Instead, the above description refers to seasonal flu – not swine or bird flu, but regular garden variety influenza.

Our fears about illness often bear little relation to our chances of falling victim to it, a phenomenon not helped by media coverage, which tends towards the novel and lurid rather than the particularly dangerous.

Ebola has become the stuff of hypochondriacs’ nightmares across the world. In the UK, the Daily Mirror had “Ebola terror as passenger dies at Gatwick” (the patient didn’t have Ebola), while New York’s news outlets (and prominent tweeters) experienced their own Ebola scare.

Even intellectual powerhouses such as Donald Trump have fallen into panic, with the mogul calling for the US to shut off all travel to west Africa and revoke citizens’ right to return to the country – who cares about fundamental rights during an outbreak? Not to be outdone, the endlessly asinine “explanatory journalism” site Vox informed us that “If the supercontinent Pangaea spontaneously reunited, the US would border the Ebola epidemic”.

Ebola is a horrific disease that kills more than half of people infected by it, though with specialist western treatment that death rate would likely fall a little. It’s unsurprising that the prospect of catching it is a scary one. The relief is that it’s not all that infectious: direct contact with bodily fluids of a visibly infected person is required, meaning that, compared with many illnesses, it’s easily contained.

Even in the midst of the current outbreak – the worst ever – the spread of the disease has not been rapid in west Africa: around 400 new cases were reported in June, and a further 500 or so in July. This is a linear spread, meaning each person at present is infecting on average around (actually just over) one additional person.

Far more worrying are diseases that spread exponentially: if one infected person spreads the disease to two or more on average, the illness spreads far quicker and is a much more worrying prospect, even if mortality is considerably lower.

The 800-plus deaths from Ebola in Africa so far this year are indisputably tragic, but it is important to keep a sense of proportion – other infectious diseases are far, far deadlier.

Since the Ebola outbreak began in February, around 300,000 people have died from malaria, while tuberculosis has likely claimed over 600,000 lives. Ebola might have our attention, but it’s not even close to being the biggest problem in Africa right now. Even Lassa fever, which shares many of the terrifying symptoms of Ebola (including bleeding from the eyelids), kills many more than Ebola – and frequently finds its way to the US.

The most real effect for millions of people reading about Ebola will be fear and stigma. During the Sars outbreak of 2003, Asian-Americans became the targets of just that, with public health hotlines inundated with calls from Americans worried about “buying Asian merchandise”, “living near Asians”, “going to school with Asians”, and more.

Similarly, during the H1N1 “swine flu” outbreak, which had almost identical spread and mortality to seasonal flu, patients reported extreme fear, prompted largely by the hysterical coverage.

In the coming months, almost none of us will catch the Ebola virus. Many of us, though, will get fevers, headaches, shivers and more.

As planes get grounded, communities are stigmatised, and mildly sick people fear for their lives, it’s worth reflecting what the biggest threat to our collective wellbeing is: rare tropical diseases, or our terrible coverage of them.

As for why the two doctors are being treated in the US, Reuters explains it well:

In the United States, much more can be done for a critically ill Ebola patient than if he or she were on the ground in West Africa. We have intensive care units that allow for careful, continuous monitoring of blood pressure, oxygenation and organ function. Blood pressure may be supported with intravenous fluids and “pressor” medications like norepinephrine, which increase blood pressure. If organs begin to fail when blood pressures are low, we can use ventilators to support breathing or dialysis if kidneys aren’t working. Ebola patients have weakened immune systems and can acquire secondary infections, for which we have a much broader array of antimicrobials at our disposal in the United States.

snubbleste

snubbleste wrote: »

Nigeria now has eight suspected ebola cases and one confirmed case.

Bear in mind, Sawyer arrived in Lagos on 20 July

Sadly a nurse who treated him has also died.

http://www.bellanaija.com/2014/08/06/ebola-nigerian-health-minister-confirms-death-of-nurse/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ebola-virus-outbreak/nigerian-nurse-who-treated-american-patrick-sawyer-dies-ebola-n173786

also the patient in Saudi Arabi suspected of having Ebola has also died, they havent yet confirmed or denied if Ebola was the cause.

garp

A Spanish Doctor/Priest has now got it. The Spanish government have sent a plane to bring him back to Spain for treatment.
Not sure that's the right move.

Tail Docker

garp wrote: »

A Spanish Doctor/Priest has now got it. The Spanish government have sent a plane to bring him back to Spain for treatment. bomb him.
Not sure that's the right move.

My version. My version is a bit harsh.

Deranged96

garp wrote: »

A Spanish Doctor/Priest has now got it. The Spanish government have sent a plane to bring him back to Spain for treatment.
Not sure that's the right move.

Of course it's the right move!
if I were out in West Africa and contracted Ebola I'd expect (demand) no less from the Irish Government.
The plane in question is special kitted out to carry a passenger with an extremely contagious disease and of course the proper protocols will be implemented when the plane touches down making the likelihood of the disease spreading almost 0

Tail Docker

Deranged96 wrote: »

Of course it's the right move!
if I were out in West Africa and contracted Ebola I'd expect (demand) no less from the Irish Government.
The plane in question is special kitted out to carry a passenger with an extremely contagious disease and of course the proper protocols will be implemented when the plane touches down making the likelihood of the disease spreading almost 0

My version makes it 0% guaranteed.

The Highwayman

BBC now reporting a man dead 'from Ebola like symptoms' in Saudi

http://www.bbc.com/news/health-28678699

Tail Docker

The Highwayman wrote: »

BBC now reporting a man dead 'from Ebola like symptoms' in Saudi

http://www.bbc.com/news/health-28678699

Time to start bombing Saudi? We may not get as good a reason again for a while. Sounds like a win/win.

fedor.2.

Tail Docker wrote: »

Time to start bombing Saudi? We may not get as good a reason again for a while. Sounds like a win/win.

Condone the bombing of innocent people, do ya? Interesting that you would joke about that.

Tail Docker

fedor.2. wrote: »

Condone the bombing of innocent people, do ya? Interesting that you would joke about that.

I can live with people having tunnels. Ebola, not so much.

Mr.Micro

It's incredible the billions that are poured into weapons to kill, like Israel funded by the US and given the latest and best killing toys. When it comes to treating, or controlling this severe and possible pandemic, Ebola outbreak, a few million is thrown at it. Maybe a few more more millions now that it's threatening the West? It's just not right.

Turtwig

NASA's yearly budget was the equivalent of two months air conditioning in US bases in Afghanistan. Says it all really.

Tail Docker

Turtwig wrote: »

NASA's yearly budget was the equivalent of two months air conditioning in US bases in Afghanistan. Says it all really.

In fairness, it gets hot in afghanistan.

donegal__road

Mr.Micro wrote: »

It's incredible the billions that are poured into weapons to kill, like Israel funded by the US and given the latest and best killing toys. When it comes to treating, or controlling this severe and possible pandemic, Ebola outbreak, a few million is thrown at it. Maybe a few more more millions now that it's threatening the West? It's just not right.

its all part of the world population control agenda you see..

Dr. Tom Frieden, the director of the United States Center for Disease Control, announced this afternoon that the agency has elevated its response to the Ebola virus to Level 1-- the highest possible response level. The CDC heightened the level today in response to multiple new diagnoses and scares around the globe.

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2014/08/06/CDC-Issues-Level-1-Alert-Highest-Possible-on-Ebola-Virus

Ops Center moved to Level 1 response to #EbolaOutbreak given the extension to Nigeria & potential to affect many lives.
7:07 PM - 6 Aug 2014

MadYaker

Mr.Micro wrote: »

It's incredible the billions that are poured into weapons to kill, like Israel funded by the US and given the latest and best killing toys. When it comes to treating, or controlling this severe and possible pandemic, Ebola outbreak, a few million is thrown at it. Maybe a few more more millions now that it's threatening the West? It's just not right.

The reality is that this disease poses no threat to those who have the ability to develope a vaccine. There isn't much money to be made selling vaccines to a few thousand africans that can't afford to pay for them. There will be a few more isolated cases in the western world like the ones we've seen but that'll be it.

FloatingVoter

Ebola found in Waterford. Gas masks on. Condoms on. Excuses ready.

http://waterfordwhispersnews.com/2014/08/05/hungover-waterford-man-convinced-he-has-the-ebola-virus/

Contributor 2013

It's going to spread and you guys thought that program on hisory channel about "doomsday preparers" was funny.
LOL

In the words of some mad scenic, "WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!!!"

Insect Overlord

Contributor 2013 wrote: »

In the words of some mad scenic, "WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!!!"

The Renault has become sentient! :eek:

FullblownRose

Tail Docker wrote: »

I can live with people having tunnels. Ebola, not so much.

As long as theyre not in your back yard eh?

Adamantium

Measles kills 120,000 per year, Ebola has killed 2500 so far

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BxUHe8v4Pw

old_aussie

August 8th

Ebola epidemic a global emergency: WHO

Looks like there could be travel restrictions put in place.

Sounds fine to me, contain and isolate it at each hot spot.

"The decision after a two-day emergency session behind closed doors in Geneva means global travel restrictions may be put in place to halt its spread as the overall death toll nears 1000".

"The WHO move comes as US health authorities admitted on Thursday that Ebola's spread beyond west Africa was "inevitable", and after medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned that the deadly virus was now "out of control" with more than 60 outbreak hotspots.

Read more at http://www.9news.com.au/health/2014/08/08/05/30/ebola-sparks-states-of-emergency#ODBsAEIijTP581re.99

old_aussie

Adamantium wrote: »

Measles kills 120,000 per year, Ebola has killed 2500 so far

Yeah measles is still a killer in countries with poor public health facillities.

Most western countries have measles controled through vaccinations.

That's the good thing about measles, there is a vaccine that works.