Ebola virus outbreak

old_aussie · 24-03-2014 12:19am #1

This outbreak seems to be moving quickly

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-03-23/ebola-outbreak-in-guinea-leaves-at-least-59-people-dead/5339338

The outbreak is around the common boarders of the three countries, Guinea, Sierra leone and liberia.

Ebola, one of the world's most virulent diseases, was first discovered in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in 1976

Hope the outbreak can be isolated asap.

Stavros Murphy · 24-03-2014 12:24am

You'd get it hard to find somewhere more isolated from rural Ireland than sierra leone, tbh, so probably gonna be fine. If you're in Sierra Leone, maybe not so much.

The Backwards Man · 24-03-2014 12:33am

Stavros Murphy wrote: »

You'd get it hard to find somewhere more isolated from rural Ireland than sierra leone, tbh, so probably gonna be fine. If you're in Sierra Leone, maybe not so much.

You'd be surprised.

Stavros Murphy · 24-03-2014 12:35am

The Backwards Man wrote: »

You'd be surprised.

Everyone round here had it already. Be grand.

The Backwards Man · 24-03-2014 12:37am

Stavros Murphy wrote: »

Everyone round here had it already. Be grand.

Na, you'd be surprised how close Ireland and Sierra Leone really are.

the_syco · 24-03-2014 1:39am

The incubation period for Ebola viral haemorrhagic fever is typically one week, during which time, the infected person will suffer from an array of symptoms such as fever, chills, back pain, vomiting, and diarrhoea.

I'm sure you could make it home

Sierra Leone and Ireland have links. Young volunteer comes home from SL, and if thought that the chills, vomiting and/or diarrhoea was just "the fear", you'd wonder how far they'd come before wiping out a small hospital?

DazMarz · 24-03-2014 1:54am

Ever since reading "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston, the Ebola virus and its derivatives have become the stuff of nightmares for me. It is seriously one of the most hideously awful diseases; it kills almost every time. Flu-like symptoms manifest, painful muscular spasms and internal haemorrhaging lead to more agony and discomfort. Death is painful and slow, with blood oozing from every orifice and a toxic soup of the virus and your bodily fluids spewing forth. The corpse remains a hotbed of toxicity, meaning you have to be processed a lot before your body can be laid to rest.

The description of the agony experienced by a man who was infected by the virus and by some form of a miracle was in the very small percentage who survived is painful to read. It is seriously horrendous.

It is also incredibly infectious. It is easily spread via blood and other bodily fluids and you can be infected orally or optically. It spreads like wildfire through hospitals and villages, sparing nobody.

Nobody knows for sure where it comes from; what is the root cause and the reservoir for the virus. Bats in the caves in Africa are the most commonly blamed, but at the same time, nobody knows for sure. This uncertainty of origin makes it even worse; fear of the unknown.

Some men who have survived it, the Ebola virus has been known to remain dormant in their sperm cells, meaning they can spread the virus through sex.

The average death rate per outbreak is somewhere between 70-75%, but in individual outbreaks and depending on the strain of the virus, mortality rates have spiked up to over 90%.

For me, this is a worse disease than anything known at the moment. Sure, we have stuff like AIDS/HIV. And Ebola has never had a major outbreak outside of Africa. But should Ebola ever make it to a densely populated urban centre (London, New York, Paris, Madrid, Moscow, Tokyo, et al) and erupt, millions could be dead and it could keep spreading. As bad as AIDS is, Ebola is worse for the pure power of it, how quickly it kills, how easily it is spread...

and most damning of all; there is no known cure or treatment.

LETHAL LADY · 24-03-2014 2:01am

Remember the Dustin Hoffman fillum? I recall it suggested that your internal organs turned to liquid, is this true?

Smidge · 24-03-2014 2:05am

The Backwards Man wrote: »

Na, you'd be surprised how close Ireland and Sierra Leone really are.

Is that you BM?

Jayz, you're looking well :pac:

wil · 24-03-2014 2:05am

The Backwards Man wrote: »

Na, you'd be surprised how close Ireland and Sierra Leone really are.

Yes Tramore was warm last summer. Took a beating in the storm though.

flynnlives · 24-03-2014 2:13am

well thankfully its not an airborne virus.

An outbreak here would be very very small. It would be contained quickly.

Poor hygiene conditions in these hospitals are the reasons it spreads. The same cant be said for a developed country.

were this to mutate into an airborne virus then we would be in serious ****. But i doubt it has the capabilities to mutate into such a strain.

If it does im on the first plane to Madagascar!

The Backwards Man · 24-03-2014 3:04am

flynnlives wrote: »

well thankfully its not an airborne virus.

An outbreak here would be very very small. It would be contained quickly.

Poor hygiene conditions in these hospitals are the reasons it spreads. The same cant be said for a developed country.

were this to mutate into an airborne virus then we would be in serious ****. But i doubt it has the capabilities to mutate into such a strain.

If it does im on the first plane to Madagascar!

I don't think that would be the time for watching cartoons.

longshanks · 24-03-2014 3:05am

Its ferocity is its weakness though. It kills so quickly that its spread is usually contained. Or maybe not, I'm pretty much making this up xx.

P_1 · 24-03-2014 3:25am

flynnlives wrote: »

well thankfully its not an airborne virus.

An outbreak here would be very very small. It would be contained quickly.

Poor hygiene conditions in these hospitals are the reasons it spreads. The same cant be said for a developed country.

were this to mutate into an airborne virus then we would be in serious ****. But i doubt it has the capabilities to mutate into such a strain.

If it does im on the first plane to Madagascar!

Iceland would be a better choice no? What with its lack of tropical conditions and all.

ardinn · 24-03-2014 3:31am

You mean Greenland!!

old_aussie · 24-03-2014 4:00am

"Sierra Leone's chief medical officer, Dr Brima Kargbo, said authorities were investigating the case of a 14-year-old boy who died in the town of Buedu in the eastern Kailahun District.

The boy had travelled to Guinea to attend the funeral of one of the outbreak's earlier victims."

Should people from these areas be stopped from travelling to other countries to stop the spread of the virus?

Tourists returning from Guinea are a worry as it could be days before the virus is confirmed and they could have infected the passengers and crew plus anyone they come in contact with when back at home.

I don't think there is any known cure or vaccine for the Ebola virus

Stavros Murphy · 24-03-2014 8:05am

flynnlives wrote: »

well thankfully its not an airborne virus.

An outbreak here would be very very small. It would be contained quickly.

Poor hygiene conditions in these hospitals are the reasons it spreads. The same cant be said for a developed country.

were this to mutate into an airborne virus then we would be in serious ****. But i doubt it has the capabilities to mutate into such a strain.

If it does im on the first plane to Madagascar!

LOL. I'm not entirely sure our lot could contain a severe out-break of Hiccups tbh. I'd have more faith in the whole "it's a long way off and the last outbreak didn't reach here". Or anywhere else outside a few African hot-spots.

I can imagine some tanned returned traveler rocking up to Portiuncula Hospital with their gee coming up their throat and some worn-out junior Doctor with a thermometer, two band-aids and some saline solution scratching their head and going "Well Lads, it could be really bad trots. Did you have a curry last night?"

harry Bailey esq · 24-03-2014 10:01am

balbriggan is due an outbreak :)seriously though that ebola is serious sh@t. i remember an outbreak in cameroon (don't quote me on that it might have been democratic republic of Congo) 15 years ago thereabouts and the death toll reached something shocking like a couple of million.the countries of origin should be locked down immediately until the problem is contained.I mean in Europe we kept foot and mouth at bay,even if travelling became a little more stressful.

OldGoat · 24-03-2014 10:24am

/PanicDance
OMGOMGOMG I just SNEEZED!

the_syco · 24-03-2014 11:14am

flynnlives wrote: »

Poor hygiene conditions in these hospitals are the reasons it spreads. The same cant be said for a developed country.

Look at how fast the winter vomiting bug went around in some hospitals...

My name is URL · 24-03-2014 2:09pm

Dustin Hoffman will save us

Son Of A Vidic · 24-03-2014 2:41pm

DazMarz wrote: »

Ever since reading "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston, the Ebola virus and its derivatives have become the stuff of nightmares for me.

Likewise, that book was an absolutely compelling read. I worked in the Hospital for Tropical Diseases in London for a while in the early Noughties and I don't miss it at all. Dealing with a suspected case of Marburg in a new Heathrow arrival is a scary experience and a real eye opener. Air travel puts these lethal viruses within easy reach of large population centres. But we have been extremely lucky thus far, that these outbreaks have tended to occur in rural areas were poverty limits an ability to travel. My greatest fear though is if and possibly when, a Filovirus like Ebola mutates to an airborne variant. With a fatality rate of >90%, we could then be facing a serious culling of humanity.

iYazi12 · 24-03-2014 2:43pm

the_syco wrote: »

Look at how fast the winter vomiting bug went around in some hospitals...

Vomiting bug is a airborne virus

Eight Ball · 24-03-2014 2:58pm

DazMarz wrote: »

Ever since reading "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston, the Ebola virus and its derivatives have become the stuff of nightmares for me. It is seriously one of the most hideously awful diseases; it kills almost every time. Flu-like symptoms manifest, painful muscular spasms and internal haemorrhaging lead to more agony and discomfort. Death is painful and slow, with blood oozing from every orifice and a toxic soup of the virus and your bodily fluids spewing forth. The corpse remains a hotbed of toxicity, meaning you have to be processed a lot before your body can be laid to rest.

The description of the agony experienced by a man who was infected by the virus and by some form of a miracle was in the very small percentage who survived is painful to read. It is seriously horrendous.

It is also incredibly infectious. It is easily spread via blood and other bodily fluids and you can be infected orally or optically. It spreads like wildfire through hospitals and villages, sparing nobody.

Nobody knows for sure where it comes from; what is the root cause and the reservoir for the virus. Bats in the caves in Africa are the most commonly blamed, but at the same time, nobody knows for sure. This uncertainty of origin makes it even worse; fear of the unknown.

Some men who have survived it, the Ebola virus has been known to remain dormant in their sperm cells, meaning they can spread the virus through sex.

The average death rate per outbreak is somewhere between 70-75%, but in individual outbreaks and depending on the strain of the virus, mortality rates have spiked up to over 90%.

For me, this is a worse disease than anything known at the moment. Sure, we have stuff like AIDS/HIV. And Ebola has never had a major outbreak outside of Africa. But should Ebola ever make it to a densely populated urban centre (London, New York, Paris, Madrid, Moscow, Tokyo, et al) and erupt, millions could be dead and it could keep spreading. As bad as AIDS is, Ebola is worse for the pure power of it, how quickly it kills, how easily it is spread...

and most damning of all; there is no known cure or treatment.

Remember reading the Hot Zone years ago and how genuinely it scared the f u ck our of me. If this ever reached Europe id be straight up to aldi to stock up for weeks inside the house with the family it would be that serious.

Silverbling · 24-03-2014 3:05pm

They could put everyone through a car wash at the borders (but without cars) like they did with foot and mouth disease

Eight Ball · 25-03-2014 9:37am

http://www.rte.ie/news/2014/0324/604362-ebola-canada/

Be afraid, be very afraid.

Canis Lupus · 25-03-2014 10:28am

Eight Ball wrote: »

http://www.rte.ie/news/2014/0324/604362-ebola-canada/

Be afraid, be very afraid.

I hear Madagascar has closed it's port.

harry Bailey esq · 25-03-2014 10:51am

OldGoat wrote: »

/PanicDance
OMGOMGOMG I just SNEEZED!

COVER YOUR MOUTH DAMNIT!!!
YOU'LL KILL US ALL

Kunkka · 25-03-2014 12:03pm

This is very serious... who knows who the person on the flight to Canada interacted with. It can be spread through sweat so even the touch of a sweaty palm is enough....

kmc25_1 · 25-03-2014 12:41pm

Eight Ball wrote: »

Remember reading the Hot Zone years ago and how genuinely it scared the f u ck our of me. If this ever reached Europe id be straight up to aldi to stock up for weeks inside the house with the family it would be that serious.

Having to shop in Aldi?
Now you are scaring me!

Eight Ball · 25-03-2014 1:41pm

Kunkka wrote: »

This is very serious... who knows who the person on the flight to Canada interacted with. It can be spread through sweat so even the touch of a sweaty palm is enough....

It could get very serious very quickly indeed.

25-03-2014 4:11pm

The man on the Canadian flight tested negative for Ebola.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/sick-man-in-saskatoon-tests-negative-for-ebola-1.2585293

snubbleste · 31-03-2014 1:01pm

It's spreading!
To Liberia
http://www.frontpageafricaonline.com/index.php/health-sci/1181-ebola-presence-confirmed

snubbleste · 31-03-2014 1:20pm

It's spreading!
To SierraLeone
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/29/us-guinea-ebola-idUSBREA2S0JA20140329

ardinn · 31-03-2014 6:12pm

This is the Zombie apocalypse everyone was so keen on getting involved in!

Im heading over to Zombie survival! then out for some ammo!

Riddle101 · 31-03-2014 7:16pm

The Backwards Man wrote: »

Na, you'd be surprised how close Ireland and Sierra Leone really are.

And of course, no Irishman would be complete without his paddy cap.

snubbleste · 31-03-2014 7:43pm

MSF said that the Zaire strain of Ebola virus was the most aggressive and deadly, killing 90%+ of patients.
"We are facing an epidemic of a magnitude never before seen in terms of the distribution of cases in Guinea.
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2014/03/msf-guinea-ebola-outbreak-unprecedented-2014331145751695533.html

It's been found in the built up area of the capital Conakry (population 2 million).
http://www.lemonde.fr/afrique/article/2014/03/27/les-premiers-cas-averes-de-virus-ebola-signales-a-conakry_4391163_3212.html

31-03-2014 8:29pm

Was just reading on what staff have to go through..

When dealing with biological hazards at this level the use of a Hazmat suit and a self-contained oxygen supply is mandatory. The entrance and exit of a Level Four biolab will contain multiple showers, a vacuum room, an ultraviolet light room, autonomous detection system, and other safety precautions designed to destroy all traces of the biohazard. Multiple airlocks are employed and are electronically secured to prevent both doors opening at the same time. All air and water service going to and coming from a Biosafety Level 4 (P4) lab will undergo similar decontamination procedures to eliminate the possibility of an accidental release.

MadYaker · 31-03-2014 8:45pm

It spreads quickly because central african hospitals don't have the facilities to contain it, their hospitals have very poor hygiene controls. It isn't airborn but if patients aren't contained properly contact their with blood, saliva, vomit, sweat etc would be enough to infect and with Ebola patients theres going to be lots of vomit and blood.....

A few weeks after I came back from a holiday in Uganda a few years ago I developed flu symptoms so I went to the doctor because I wasn't taking any chances, after I told him where id been for the previous month he told me to go straight to hospital where they tested me for all kinds of thing including Ebola so doctors here are aware of it. Id say they'd have no problem containing it once they realised what they were dealing with.

FullblownRose · 31-03-2014 8:49pm

Why have the W.H.O not advised travel restrictions for the affected countries? That seems a bit lax...

snubbleste · 04-04-2014 9:52am

Suspected cases in Mali
http://news.iafrica.com/worldnews/911493.html

Homer · 04-04-2014 10:00am

It's been confirmed that Mary Harney has contracted the Ebola flesh-eating disease.

Doctors have given her 27 years to live.

snubbleste · 05-04-2014 8:00pm

Locals attack Ebola treatment clinic in Guinea claiming MSF introduced deadly disease to the country..

The violence took place in Macenta, where at least 14 people have died from Ebola. The mob of people who descended upon the clinic accused MSF of bringing Ebola to Guinea, where there had never previously been any cases. http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/ebola-clinic-in-guinea-evacuated-after-attack-1.2599555

My name is URL · 05-04-2014 9:43pm

snubbleste wrote: »

Locals attack Ebola treatment clinic in Guinea claiming MSF introduced deadly disease to the country..

That's fcuked up. Just goes to show how dangerous it is for uneducated people to become scared of something!

I mean look at it from their ignorant perspective. Doctors pre-emptively arrive before the virus takes hold, set up a containment centre and then all of a sudden people start getting sick and are being carted off to this place which they never return from.

It doesn't help that they're very tribal and superstitious people either.

FullblownRose · 06-04-2014 10:01am

They have the custom of washing the bodies of the dead and the aid workers have to explain that they cant do that because the bodies are still germy. I think with Marburg outbreaks they put bleach in the bucket of water they were putting their hands into to wash the people with and that got around that particular problem. I can see how easily people might become scared and superstitious in a situation like that.

up for anything · 06-04-2014 12:39pm

flynnlives wrote: »

were this to mutate into an airborne virus then we would be in serious ****. But i doubt it has the capabilities to mutate into such a strain.

http://www.healthline.com/health/ebola-hemorrhagic-fever

There is some evidence that the Ebola virus can be spread through the air from nonhuman primate to nonhuman primate, such as monkey-to-monkey, in research facilities. No definitive studies have proven this, however.

downonthefarm · 06-04-2014 12:48pm

You have to admire nature.
She has some ingenious ways of culling the population on an already burdened Continent

Schwiiing · 06-04-2014 12:53pm

Stavros Murphy wrote: »

LOL. I'm not entirely sure our lot could contain a severe out-break of Hiccups tbh. I'd have more faith in the whole "it's a long way off and the last outbreak didn't reach here". Or anywhere else outside a few African hot-spots.

I can imagine some tanned returned traveler rocking up to Portiuncula Hospital with their gee coming up their throat and some worn-out junior Doctor with a thermometer, two band-aids and some saline solution scratching their head and going "Well Lads, it could be really bad trots. Did you have a curry last night?"

A good dose of Ebola would do Ballinasloe the world of good. Especially up round the St Grellans Hymany Poolboy areas. And a decent outbreak around the first week in October would do wonders for some of it's more 'nomadic' visitors.

snubbleste · 09-04-2014 8:29pm

Death toll now exceeds 100. Outbreak expected to last months.
Current Ebola epidemic 'unprecedented', WHO warns

snubbleste · 10-06-2014 3:18pm

Death toll hits 220
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/06/10/can-anything-stop-west-africas-outbreak-of-ebola/

10-06-2014 3:47pm

flynnlives wrote: »

Poor hygiene conditions in these hospitals are the reasons it spreads. The same cant be said for a developed country.

The bugs in Irish hospitals would have their way with the Ebola Virus and then eat it.

Ebola virus outbreak

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