So... Ebola...

So my little brother is headed to Africa next month to do some medical aid work. He's pre-med and doing it with a school program. Luckily he'll be in Tanzania which is not near the outbreak but obviously we're still concerned.

So far this little virus is just body fluid (blood, etc) transmission correct? That seems to be the key. As long as it doesn't go airborne its still containable as long as safer protocols are met/used, right? I know there was a comparison to the Spanish flu pandemic in the early 1900's but that virus was spread through the air which is a different animal.

 

I'm not saying that is cant overwhelm regions and even countries at some point, but there has to be some type of choke point which will prevent a global pandemic, unless the viral transmission mechanism changes to create easier infection route. Now if the incubation period slows a little more, leaving the virus more time to evolve in a way to become airborne, then we will truly be screwed...is there or has there been a virus with a 50% kill rate had an airborne transmission route? I'm not sure that these types of filoviruses have the capability of surviving long enough in airborne particles to remain infectious, but if they develop that capability, then the world is screwed.

 

I guess an other transmission route would be that scavengers feeding on infected tissue would become infected and then open up access to more population centers.

 

Anyway, heres a cool scientific article/experiment on viability of filoviruses in tissue, airesols and solid surfaces...Filoviruses

 

Anyway, heres a cool scientific article/experiment on viability of filoviruses in tissue, airesols and solid surfaces...Filoviruses

 

I can quote that cool article here:

 

 

"Forbidden

 

You don't have permission to access /store/10.1111/j.1365-2672.2010.04778.x/asset/j.1365-2672.2010.04778.x.pdf on this server."

 

Thank me later.

Term "slate viper" has been mentioned many times, what does it mean?

 

"Slate wiper". A "slate" is another name for a "chalkboard". Not sure what Europeans call the big board at the front of the room that a teacher writes on?

 

 

To "wipe" it means to erase everything that's on it, like a teacher would do at the end of the class.

 

 

In medical terms it means a virus capable of exterminating human life on earth. Ebola Zaire IS THE "Slate Wiper". No vaccine. Highly infectious. No treatment, and incredibly high (60-90%+ under the BEST circumstances) fatality rates.

 

 

Humans are the writing on the Earth's "slate." Ebola Zaire has the potential to be the eraser.

So far this little virus is just body fluid (blood, etc) transmission correct? That seems to be the key. As long as it doesn't go airborne its still containable as long as safer protocols are met/used, right? I know there was a comparison to the Spanish flu pandemic in the early 1900's but that virus was spread through the air which is a different animal.

 

I'm not saying that is cant overwhelm regions and even countries at some point, but there has to be some type of choke point which will prevent a global pandemic, unless the viral transmission mechanism changes to create easier infection route. Now if the incubation period slows a little more, leaving the virus more time to evolve in a way to become airborne, then we will truly be screwed...is there or has there been a virus with a 50% kill rate had an airborne transmission route? I'm not sure that these types of filoviruses have the capability of surviving long enough in airborne particles to remain infectious, but if they develop that capability, then the world is screwed.

 

I guess an other transmission route would be that scavengers feeding on infected tissue would become infected and then open up access to more population centers.

 

Anyway, heres a cool scientific article/experiment on viability of filoviruses in tissue, airesols and solid surfaces...Filoviruses

 

It is, and always has been SOMEWHAT airborne... In terms of don't breath in aerosolized bodily fluids (i.e. coughs or blood as its being cleaned with high pressure water, etc...) Its also transmitted via fomites... But yes, its less contagious than the typical flu... But again... The worst flu pandemics (that wiped out millions of people) had slightly higher r-0 values but much lower fatality rates. You're really only consoling yourself with the fact that it may take three years to wrap the globe (and kill billions) versus two years for a flu bug (that kills millions)...

 

Again, people hear "bodily fluids" and think HIV... This is much more infectious than HIV.

 

Plus, this one is already different... It seems more infectious (but relatively less deadly- probably 75% fatality rather than 90%, although that will increase as health care becomes undeliverable) than previous EBZ strains.

 

It really is a strange virus. Sometimes, people who should have been exposed, because they sat next to a sick patient in a hospital waiting room for hours as they bled out, don't get exposed. People who are wrapped in space suits and never have direct contact with sick people, sometimes get exposed.

 

Ebola Reston is another Florovirus, that is believed to be as infectious as the flu- completely airborne. Person A has it on one side of a building, and the HVAC causes person B to get it on the opposite side of the building... they're never in the same room. BUT, Reston does not make humans sick. The nightmare scenario is that Reston meets Zaire in the wild and they have a red headed step child with both of their nasty traits.

I can quote that cool article here:

 

 

"Forbidden

 

You don't have permission to access /store/10.1111/j.1365-2672.2010.04778.x/asset/j.1365-2672.2010.04778.x.pdf on this server."

 

Thank me later.

Lol, well that sucks. That cool article came right up before I tried to link it. Anyway, thank you!

"Slate wiper". A "slate" is another name for a "chalkboard". Not sure what Europeans call the big board at the front of the room that a teacher writes on?

 

 

To "wipe" it means to erase everything that's on it, like a teacher would do at the end of the class.

 

 

In medical terms it means a virus capable of exterminating human life on earth. Ebola Zaire IS THE "Slate Wiper". No vaccine. Highly infectious. No treatment, and incredibly high (60-90%+ under the BEST circumstances) fatality rates.

 

 

Humans are the writing on the Earth's "slate." Ebola Zaire has the potential to be the eraser.

 

got it! Thanks!

That's how the words tasted in my mouth but when translated slate i got this:

 

and viper was my bad as it was wiper which would made immediately more sense.

Sep 20

 

 

5927 Cases... 2767 Dead

 

592 new cases. 145 More deaths... 6 days...

 

 

The good news. It looks like its controlled in both Senegal and Nigeria...

 

The bad news- still doubling every 3-4 weeks. Which means 13,xxx+ cases by Halloween. 26,xxx+ by thanksgiving.

 

 

September 22

 

6405 cases. 2984 deaths

 

 

478 new cases. 217 more deaths... 2 days.

 

 

This is now the equivalent of a commercial airline crash, every other day.

Dallas area hospital currently has someone in isolation who could have Ebola.

Hoo boy, wait till Roman sees that.

 

His office ten minutes later:

 

Dallas area hospital currently has someone in isolation who could have Ebola.

 

a headline from marketwatch about this, I do hope it is found not to be ebola.

 

Tekmira shares jump 14% on report of U.S. Ebola case

 

Just heard it had been detected in Texas...

Confirmed.... It's here.

fcuk, it is confirmed...

 

It made its way to our shores...

So how many hospitals in the US have had patients with confirmed cases? 3 now? Atlanta, one up north (Minnesota I think?) and now Dallas? 2 were on purpose and this last one in Dallas is "accidental", i.e. luckily the docs who treated this person for flu like symptoms put 2 and 2 together to recognize that he may be infected…now the epidemiologists will have to scramble to figure out who else may have been exposed…to quote Spaulding, "double farts!"

 

*edit to correct caddy shack reference!*

So how many hospitals in the US have had patients with confirmed cases? 3 now? Atlanta, one up north (Minnesota I think?) and now Dallas? 2 were on purpose and this last one in Dallas is "accidental", i.e. luckily the docs who treated this person for flu like symptoms put 2 and 2 together to recognize that he may be infected…now the epidemiologists will have to scramble to figure out who else may have been exposed…to quote Smolding, "double farts!"

 

Dallas is #1 confirmed.

Oh shit

Dallas is #1 confirmed.

 

#1 confirmed off the street…that first American Doc who caught it was flown to Atlanta for treatment…just can't remember about the one up north, but I thought it was another worker or doctor who was treated after being infected? Could be wrong on that though. Either way, the Dallas one is spooky because, holy crap, its here unannounced...

So it says they are "investigating" how many people this person may have come into contact with. They said the person was admitted due to "flu like symptoms" and where they had recently traveled. That is the part that scares me the most, this person has been roaming through airports, going to stores, pumping gas, touching credit card pads at stores shaking hands with people and the like. Did this person know they were infected before they got on the plane from Africa and didn't tell anyone so that they could make it back to the US to be treated??? fcuk me man, I am not a doomsday guy, but this could be apocalyptic/end of days type stuff.

 

The hospital is even saying, "we have great treatment, we can handle an epidemic like this". The hubris of these people is what is going to get everyone killed.

#1 confirmed off the street…that first American Doc who caught it was flown to Atlanta for treatment…just can't remember about the one up north, but I thought it was another worker or doctor who was treated after being infected? Could be wrong on that though. Either way, the Dallas one is spooky because, holy crap, its here unannounced...

That one was in Omaha. Im pretty sure they have since been released.

Yeah "they can handle and epidemic" of 3 people..... once the numbers swell to 50 or 100 we're fuckked

Patient left Liberia on September 19.

First symptoms on September 24th.... Admitted to hospital on September 28th....

 

He was in the US for 9 days before being admitted. At least 4 of those he was contagious...

 

 

 

 

It's going to be a long three weeks....

First symptoms on September 24th.... Admitted to hospital on September 28th....

 

He was in the US for 9 days before being admitted. At least 4 of those he was contagious...

 

 

 

 

It's going to be a long three weeks....

 

 

I almost wish they would nut up and tell people to be on high alert, be clean, keep to yourself as much as possible and lets try to do some damage control.

Oh hell..