Ebola outbreak - general thread #2

[chipmunk]

SMH. My husband was setting up a tv in another room this morning and an interviewer was talking to a doctor about ebola and the likelyhood of catching it. The doctor said there is no need to worry about getting it from someone coughing or sneezing. Unless you put your hand in the contagious persons's mouth to touch saliva you aren't going to get it. WTF?! My husband yelled "Did you just hear that?!"

How do these idiots get airtime? And when is the media going to be responsible and do some research? Jmo

Virologists with ebola expertise do state it can not be transmitted by airborne route between humans like colds and flu can. They talk about how pigs are different, their sneezes, etc travel further than human and non human primates. That our "spray" doesn't travel far enough. They're adamant about it. I do have my doubts about this. How many virologists really know that much about a disease that has only occurred in remote forested areas of Africa?

However if a person flipped of their protective glove with enough force the virus can travel through the air onto them or others. We know this because it's been reported.

I read the medical report about monkeys caged separately that still became infected. It may have been transmitted by food trays or other items used in all cages, carelessness. What stood out to me is Lysol Spray was used. A spray could pick up and disburse the virus I'd think. Makes sense to me.
jmo

 

[LinasK]

I have a family member who lives in Dallas and has no electricity since the storm. They packed up the freezer and took the contents to a friend's house and have been staying there since. No bailout . You just have to wait it out . It's an act of nature and has nothing to do with ebola.

We lost electricity/power outages a couple of years ago due to the heat. We used ice chests for our refrigerated food, then didn't open it up and went on a tour of a goldmine underground- nice and cool!

 

[trigger]

Watch the video on Nova

http://documentaries-plus.blogspot.com/2014/08/ebola-plague-fighters.html

 

[LinasK]

CDC Officials Meet Flight After Passenger Shows Possible Ebola Symptoms


A United Airilines flight from Brussels was met by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials today at Newark Liberty International Airport after a passenger on board believed to be from Liberia exhibited possible signs of Ebola.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/cdc-of...senger-shows-ebola-symptoms/story?id=25965383

Thank goodness, they caught this one!!!

 

[LinasK]

Hmmm Plane + Brussels + Liberia ..........where have we seen that before ? I'd be terrified to fly in that region any time soon.

Also, United.

 

[LinasK]

There are even banners, posters, graphics, in West Africa that have open coughing and hand shaking as things not to do while there is still an outbreak there.

It's frustrating to see the school aged children in Dallas tweet things like "Unless you guys are licking pools of their blood, or eating their poop, you won't get ebola."

IF that were truly the case, how do they suppose the virus was transferred to Duncan?

While typing this, CNN has released that Duncan's condition has worsened and he is now in critical condition.

This article: http://www.dailypress.com/health/la-fg-ebola-liberia-20141003,0,3662970.story?page=2 says that Marthalene Williams may have vomited on Duncan. These people are in full denial or ignorance!!! They either don't understand the disease or don't want the stigma, but they are being incredibly selfish and stupid, and it's costing people's lives. GRRRR!

 

[elfie]

QUOTE=passionflower;11052025]Until being terminated in early September, he had worked as a personal driver for the general manager of Safeway Cargo, a FedEx contractor in Liberia. He did not work for FedEx, as earlier reported, the company said Thursday.

Do you have a link for your statements about Mr Duncan being sacked? My understanding was that he walked out of his job abruptly.

This is from abc news - I have read similar elsewhere:

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/texas-ebola-patient-thomas-duncan-prayed-family-phone/story?id=25885934[/quote]

~~~~

That is what I understood, as well, Lyra. He had quit his job in the beginning of September and had a ticket for the US around that same time. His encounter with the stricken neighbor was on the 15th.

If we consider that the GDP per capita in Liberia is $454 per annum:

http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.PCAP.CD

and that the cheapest one way airfare through Brussels Airlines (partner with United) is $1320.23 (without fees) then it is understandable that he would make every effort to travel, not exhibiting symptoms and having obtained a Visa.

What I find difficult to believe is that he would risk the health of his girlfriend, and family! He should have been much more forthcoming.

 

[chipmunk]

Some details on what US troops will be doing and who they are. None will be treating patients:
http://complex.foreignpolicy.com/po...ploys_more_troops_to_africa_to_fight_outbreak (free subscription needed)

BTW the excellent comments below this article by a number of RNs are very important to read, enlightening. Many nurses and nurses' associations are upset and complaining that they have Not been trained on how to care for ebola patients. Or if trained just ER/ED staff, not IUC nurses. A recent survey is cited and broken down. They say there's only 19 special level biohazard rooms (? see article) in the entire country. That current patient/RN ratios won't work for an ebola patient, they need so much care is should be 1/1 ratio.

30% of hospitals don't have enough protective gear and certain other supplies. Much more, take a look.

 

[lawstudent]

If the woman died from ebola and was rejected from the hospital, the baby would be dead within minutes. I doubt they would even attempt a C-section on an ebola patient at this point, since they appear to be overwhelmed by other patients and that's just a big risk.

Have people ever read about Typhoid Mary? That was transferred only by contact with human waste, but I don't think people realize how frequently we probably come into contact with the fluids of other people - less so in a modern, clean society, but not at all rarely. Then it has to enter your body through your eyes, mouth, or a cut of some sort. It's not as easily spread as airborne diseases, but you can certainly get it without ingesting the person's body fluids on purpose. Both sides are being crazy with this. Given the symptoms of the disease, and the lack of modern sanitation in Liberia, it's not at all weird that someone could get bodily fluids on them while helping carry someone to the hospital or whatever. That doesn't mean it's airborne, but it can certainly be unintentional.

There is certainly a risk to health professionals, but not a big one. People seem to think the doctors getting it means it was airborne. Someone working in such close contact with victims could easily eventually catch it, even with precautions, with just one slip up. Look at how many early nuclear physicists killed themselves through mishaps with their materials, or how many doctors have accidentally pricked themselves with an infected needle - it's not common, but it happens when you work with that stuff all the time and get into a routine.

The family washing the sheets in warm water would not have been helpful at all and would have increased the chance of infection. While it seems that should have been handled better, if they've been told to stay away from anything contaminated, they are probably in terror. If the soiled sheets are across the room in bags, the chances of infection are low. if they start trying to handle them without proper means to disinfect and protect themselves, that's how it gets spread.

 

[cady]

Youngor (sp) Jallah, the daughter of Louise, upon returning to the apartment after Duncan was admitted to the hospital, sprayed the bedsheets and towels with Clorox and I think, bagged them in plastic. Sprayed the mattress and told her mother not to sleep on it. She did all she could do. I truly cannot remember where I read this but I think it was Dallas Morning News. I read that she warned the EMS guys before they entered, to cover themselves because she believed that Duncan had "the virus". JMO

 

[Lyra500]

This makes me think they may have been vomiting on the plane , uncontrollably and others are wanting to be properly cleaned up or are going to be properly cleaned up . What a mess.

Well unless they were running up and down the aisle deliberately projectile vomiting on people that seems unlikely. I would have thought they would be encouraged to use sick bags.

Ebola makes you feel absolutely awful - have you ever have proper influenza - I mean the real deal. Serious viral illnesses make you incredibly weak and so ill that you find it hard to do anything, let alone vomiting uncontrollably over a plane load of passengers.

One of the early symptoms is significant weakness - so all this talk of people with Ebola walking around and infecting hundreds of people seems a little far fetched to be honest.

I think the risk is more likely to be related to things that they have touched and contaminated (if the do turn out to have Ebola). So, touching chair backs and overhead lockers, using the toilets etc,

PH will want to get everyone's details I would think so that they can follow them up - as they will no doubt want to err on the side of caution and treat everyone as a contact and monitor for 21 days should tests come back positive on the man and his daughter.

JMOO

 

[popsicle]

Youngor (sp) Jallah, the daughter of Louise, upon returning to the apartment after Duncan was admitted to the hospital, sprayed the bedsheets and towels with Clorox and I think, bagged them in plastic. Sprayed the mattress and told her mother not to sleep on it. She did all she could do. I truly cannot remember where I read this but I think it was Dallas Morning News. I read that she warned the EMS guys before they entered, to cover themselves because she believed that Duncan had "the virus". JMO

I wonder if she knew he had slept in ALL the beds and sprayed ALL the mattresses.

 

[Lyra500]

Doesn't matter they're all walking time bombs now they all breathed the same air etc

Do you have a link to a reputable source which shows that Ebola is airborne in humans?

 

[LinasK]

Youngor (sp) Jallah, the daughter of Louise, upon returning to the apartment after Duncan was admitted to the hospital, sprayed the bedsheets and towels with Clorox and I think, bagged them in plastic. Sprayed the mattress and told her mother not to sleep on it. She did all she could do. I truly cannot remember where I read this but I think it was Dallas Morning News. I read that she warned the EMS guys before they entered, to cover themselves because she believed that Duncan had "the virus". JMO

She warned them he had "a virus" but didn't go so far as to say it could be Ebola- that I think she should have said.

 

[cady]

I wonder if she knew he had slept in ALL the beds and sprayed ALL the mattresses.

I don't think so. She was freaked out because her kids had slept over when he was symptomatic..........scary JMO

 

[jjenny]

I wonder if she knew he had slept in ALL the beds and sprayed ALL the mattresses.

Why did he sleep in all beds? It's just so bizarre.

 

[Detective Klimpt]

From this link- oh, this is great- they believed it was everything but Ebola:
s a crowd gathered and the shouting grew louder, accusations flew. Some claimed that she had vomited on Duncan. Some said that she had bled from the mouth. Others said the family lied and said she'd been injured in a car accident. Few of the accusations were consistent, other than the general outrage that the family told neighbors she had died of "low blood," or low blood pressure, and pregnancy complications. But the Blessing Home Clinic, which examined Marthalene on Sept. 15, had diagnosed malaria, according to staffers. When she started convulsing, they told the family to take her to a hospital.

Yes, but, while many news reports vary, all that I've read say that she was turned away from hospitals because they had no room in the EBOLA ward. Either the hospital assumed she had ebola or her family told them.

 

[jjenny]

BTW the excellent comments below this article by a number of RNs are very important to read, enlightening. Many nurses and nurses' associations are upset and complaining that they have Not been trained on how to care for ebola patients. Or if trained just ER/ED staff, not IUC nurses. A recent survey is cited and broken down. They say there's only 19 special level biohazard rooms (? see article) in the entire country. That current patient/RN ratios won't work for an ebola patient, they need so much care is should be 1/1 ratio.

30% of hospitals don't have enough protective gear and certain other supplies. Much more, take a look.

Yes, we are not ready at all.
With this one case, we already saw stumble after stumble, and this is with one guy (so far) showing symptoms. What will happen if he infected more persons and they all start showing symptoms at the same time? Total pandemonium.

 

[LinasK]

Yes, but, while many news reports vary, all that I've read say that she was turned away from hospitals because they had no room in the EBOLA ward. Either the hospital assumed she had ebola or her family told them.

The Williams family denied it to everyone- the taxi driver, to Duncan, and all the neighbors. The neighbors are pissed that the family didn't warn them.


An angry group gathered on a hill above the family's house, shouting angrily that Amie and Emmanuel Williams must have known that their daughter had Ebola.
One woman screamed that her children had played with the Williams children. Another shouted that one of the Williams women had plaited her hair. Others were furious that they had gone into the Williamses' house after Marthalene's death to view her body. Bodies of Ebola victims are even more contagious than living patients.<snip> "Her parents said she never died of Ebola, so everyone in the community went to sympathize," said a furious Martu Weeforo, 37, one of the neighbors on the hill. "Plenty of people came in the yard." http://www.dailypress.com/health/la-fg-ebola-liberia-20141003,0,3662970.story?page=2

 

[SCHMAE]

Well unless they were running up and down the aisle deliberately projectile vomiting on people that seems unlikely. I would have thought they would be encouraged to use sick bags.

Ebola makes you feel absolutely awful - have you ever have proper influenza - I mean the real deal. Serious viral illnesses make you incredibly weak and so ill that you find it hard to do anything, let alone vomiting uncontrollably over a plane load of passengers.

One of the early symptoms is significant weakness - so all this talk of people with Ebola walking around and infecting hundreds of people seems a little far fetched to be honest.

I think the risk is more likely to be related to things that they have touched and contaminated (if the do turn out to have Ebola). So, touching chair backs and overhead lockers, using the toilets etc,

PH will want to get everyone's details I would think so that they can follow them up - as they will no doubt want to err on the side of caution and treat everyone as a contact and monitor for 21 days should tests come back positive on the man and his daughter.

JMOO

I was just speculating as to why they did not let the other passengers off of the plane after removing the 2 patients. Do we know if they are off the plane now? Like I said many pages back, I think anyone who vomits in public is going to get a little ' ebola stigma' from onlookers because of fear right now. I mean it's Saturday in the US . How many people are going to be vomiting tonight/ morning in public at 2 am ? After the bars close? KWIM? Will they all be left alone with their drunkenness while their friends scatter in case they are infected?