Ebola Out Break Confirmed

ZeussusZ
Most often Ebola wipes itself out by killing the host to quickly, stopping itself from spreading.
Anyway not a nice way to go.

edit on 22-3-2014 by ZeussusZ because: (no reason given)

Thats pretty much correct.

As nasty as it is, it pretty much fizzles out and rarely spreads beyond the local area as the the diseases progresses so rapidly and the the symptoms so serous that its easy to spot and localize.

reply to post by Bishbop09


Read the book "The hot zone" By Richard Preston. It will scare the hell out of you.

openminded2011
reply to post by Bishbop09

 

Read the book "The hot zone" By Richard Preston. It will scare the hell out of you.

Haha I will download a copy tomorrow night! )

reply to post by jhn7537

Ouch, adds a REAL nasty dimension to a vest crowd-bomber, vicinity and any wounded become carriers.

buni11687
I read the thread mentioning this new outbreak in the area not too long ago.

Im wondering how something like this has spread so rapidly.

The Ebola virus isn't really a fast travelling virus, since it has to be spread via body to body (fluid) contact. It also generally kills the host faster than it can travel to another host.

Im hoping it's like the outbreaks that occurred in the 1990's, since those were generally spread via un sterilized medical equipment. This can easily be contained if those same factors are current to whatever strain this Ebola virus is.

However, if this strain has mutated, then we have other concerns.

(Worst could be airborne infection, but that's extremely unlikely, and I mean very unlikely.....but nature does do crazy things sometimes)

Buses, trains, toilets, doors etc Heck even planes due to their air recirculation (which they only do to save money, since somking is no longer allowed, thats why you always get a dry scratchy sore throat, it was actually more healthy when they allowed smoking, ironically)

They dont actually have to sneeze in your face or kiss you to give it to you, a simply wipe of a nose or cough in the hand and then touching somthing will transfer it quite successfully.

**linked from a closed thread, though it is relevant and should be included**

Biigs

buni11687
I read the thread mentioning this new outbreak in the area not too long ago.

Im wondering how something like this has spread so rapidly.

The Ebola virus isn't really a fast travelling virus, since it has to be spread via body to body (fluid) contact. It also generally kills the host faster than it can travel to another host.

Im hoping it's like the outbreaks that occurred in the 1990's, since those were generally spread via un sterilized medical equipment. This can easily be contained if those same factors are current to whatever strain this Ebola virus is.

However, if this strain has mutated, then we have other concerns.

(Worst could be airborne infection, but that's extremely unlikely, and I mean very unlikely.....but nature does do crazy things sometimes)

Buses, trains, toilets, doors etc Heck even planes due to their air recirculation (which they only do to save money, since somking is no longer allowed, thats why you always get a dry scratchy sore throat, it was actually more healthy when they allowed smoking, ironically)

They dont actually have to sneeze in your face or kiss you to give it to you, a simply wipe of a nose or cough in the hand and then touching somthing will transfer it quite successfully.

**linked from a closed thread, though it is relevant and should be included**

Nope that bodily fluid would then have to then have to come into contact with one of your mucus membranes. You can not contract it by simply touching contaminated surfaces or substances. Best example ever of why you should wash your hands regularly. The most fascinating thing to me about this virus is we have no idea what the natural host of it is. Its obviously not humans because It makes us sick and kills us and there are times when no human is infected and then it pops up again. As a some one stated above "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston Is a fascinating book on Ebola and Maulberg, "Demond in the Freezer" is another good book by him about Small Pox I would recommend you read both.

Apparently Ebola can be transmitted in the air -- without contact -- according to this article: Airborne Ebola I hope that's not the case here. If it is, and if it is really spreading to larger cities, this could become a huge problem. Most of the world is just a short flight from the major cities.....

This oubreak is now in the capitol city of Guinea and has also spread to Sierra Leone. Capital of Guinea and one city in Sierra Leone too

BayesLike
Apparently Ebola can be transmitted in the air -- without contact -- according to this article: Airborne Ebola I hope that's not the case here. If it is, and if it is really spreading to larger cities, this could become a huge problem. Most of the world is just a short flight from the major cities.....

This oubreak is now in the capitol city of Guinea and has also spread to Sierra Leone. Capital of Guinea and one city in Sierra Leone too

edit on 453am14America/Chicago39052kAmerica/Chicago by BayesLike because: (no reason given)

edit on 453am14America/Chicago36053kAmerica/Chicago by BayesLike because: (no reason given)

When it comes to airborne transmission yes it can, in fact it been "known" for a long time.
For some reason it just doesn't seem do it human to human at least not often even though it really should.

BGTM90
The most fascinating thing to me about this virus is we have no idea what the natural host of it is.

Bats.

Evidence seems to be pointing more and more to bats.

Ebola has a similar related virus called Marburg that's almost identical. And all the case zeros seems to have always been to a bat cave first.

crazyewok
When it comes to airborne transmission yes it can, in fact it been "known" for a long time.
For some reason it just doesn't seem do it human to human at least not often even though it really should.

Given the types of rules they typically put in place for showing things like casual transmission and airborne transmission, it's not likely to be shown for a long time even if it is a significant percentage of the cases. The reason for the tough rules is to prevent panic, not determine truth. The truth is we don't know for sure in every case how the transmission occurred. It's just assumed that touching contaminated blood was involved if there was any chance, no matter how remote, that was possible. It's virtually always possible to make that objection seem reasonable 12 to 30 days after exposure occurred.

So, no, unless you get a group of volunteers to hang around in close quarters to ebola victims but unable to touch them or any blood, airborne transmission will not be shown. That's just not going to happen. So, with the present requirements, it's not going to be shown to happen even if it really happens 50% of the time.

crazyewok

BGTM90
The most fascinating thing to me about this virus is we have no idea what the natural host of it is.

Bats.

Evidence seems to be pointing more and more to bats.

Ebola has a similar related virus called Marburg that's almost identical. And all the case zeros seems to have always been to a bat cave first.

oh how bloody scary...

Just read on abc news outbreak in Guinea has reached 59.
hope it doesn't reach our shores (Australia)
Ebola update

reply to post by Thurisaz

reply to post by Thurisaz

hope it doesn't reach our shores (Australia)

It may already be there, with today's fast-paced world and jet airliners.

Take comfort in the fact that, historically speaking, Ebola does not tend to spread very far from the location of the initial outbreak.
But... a mutation of the virus could change that up.

Thurisaz


oh how bloody scary...

Just read on abc news outbreak in Guinea has reached 59.
hope it doesn't reach our shores (Australia)
Ebola update

Doubtful.

It such a nasty bug its too nasty for its own good.

Easy to spot and quarantine in the west. It really only a problem in 3rd world cesspits were hygiene and education is servery lacking. Not to say its not something to take seriously but unless its weaponized and deliberately introduced to the west it not likely to spread beyond Africa.

I was only Cat 3 certified so never worked with Ebola and its like but I do know microbiologist that have and from what I gather its a pretty finicky virus too.

reply to post by crazyewok

Thats pretty much correct.

As nasty as it is, it pretty much fizzles out and rarely spreads beyond the local area as the the diseases progresses so rapidly and the the symptoms so serous that its easy to spot and localize.

Thats not "pretty much correct". A "micro break" becomes an "outbreak" because efforts to quarantine a virulent virus fail. They fail because as it becomes known there is a plague and it is actually identified and "index cases" are located, people in that area who are close to victims discover this from questions by medical response personnel.

They want to isolate the people infected. The other people right there are not going to hang out and wait to get infected. They flee. They flee ahead of the plague and some may bring it with them. They carry the hidden disease still in the incubation period (ebola can be days before first symptoms). Unless they are also tracked down and tested positive quickly they will infect more people outside the quarantine area and create more micro breaks wherever they wind up.

This tends to magnify the problem because these people who are infected are scared and don't want anyone knowing they have the bug. So they hide. It is one of the insidious aspects to a plague outbreak and is covered in the book "The Hot Zone", by Richard Preston. This book is mentioned by the poster right below you.

Highly recommended.

A virus is less than 24 hours away from any place on earth by jetliner.

intrptr
It is one of the insidious aspects to a plague outbreak and is covered in the book "The Hot Zone", by Richard Preston. This book is mentioned by the poster right below you.

Highly recommended.

A virus is less than 24 hours away from any place on earth by jetliner.

I don't need too in fact I have read it and I also hold a Degree in said area.


Now if you bothered to READ I also said such a outbreak does need to be taken seriously but that it is easy to quarantine and contained compared to other pathogens due to its deadly nature. And this has been shown time and time again from other outbreaks of Ebola and Marburg.

Its not going to be the end of the world fact. Yes you could very well get a nasty outbreak but Its not going to turn in to a world ending pandemic like the doom porners on here predict.

UPDATE:

Looks like the virus found in the capital was not Ebola:

www.bbc.co.uk...

So it hasn't got that far.....yet! Let's home it stays away and burns out!

reply to post by crazyewok

Doubtful.

It such a nasty bug its too nasty for its own good.

Easy to spot and quarantine in the west.

I don't know where you are getting this information from but it is inaccurate and misleading. Please do some research on this subject before you post.

Ebola is not that easily identified. It is highly virulent. There is no cure. The incubation period is long. Early symptoms are flu like and victims tend to convince themselves there is no need to report to quarantine because they are not sure they got it and the fear is that if they go to quarantine they will contract it.

Quarantine by definition is not a catch all remedy. Until they identify all potential cases and isolate them they are playing catch up. Hopefully they are following established procedures as to that. But likely they are not as educated (being they are living in poorer regions) and have not been trained. The further from hospitals, the less knowledge about procedure.

People tend to flee ahead of a plague like they would a forest fire. This compounds the problem. Its how the Black Plague spread so far and wide in the Dark Ages. The embers from a fire drift ahead of the flame front and start little fires ahead of the main line of fire. The danger is that a fire storm will start and control of the outbreak is lost. It is the worst case scenario (now its a plague) and rarely happens. So far earth has been lucky in the modern age (except for AIDS and a variety of STDs)

The analogy that a virus burns thru humans like fire burns thru a forest is one used in the Book, "The Hot Zone". The virus just sees a person as "meat" to be consumed the way flames consume a tree in the forest. Densely packed population centers are most vulnerable in this case.

There are loads of meat in cities…

reply to post by Bishbop09

Haha I will download a copy tomorrow night!

You won't be able to put it down…

enjoy!