Family Living with American Doctor Who Contracted Ebola Return to the States

The wedding wasn't a cover story... it and their return trip to the US were planned months in advance. This is direct from family members.

I do agree it has spread and I also question the method(s) through which it is being transmitted, as this doctor was supposedly meticulous following protocol. I don't believe it would spread like wildfire in a developed country with good sanitation and medical care (like US or UK) but I do believe it is inevitable it will eventually spread to other countries (if it has not already). Maybe not a catastrophic outbreak, but it will spread. Chief medical correspondent on CNN said when he was traveling out of Guinea, they basically took his temp & had him fill out a quick questionnaire. He said, "If I had been exposed for whatever reason and it was 21 days later before I got sick, there was nothing that would have prevented me from getting on that plane." Also Patrick Sawyer swore he wasn't in contact with anyone who had the disease. I think it is highly likely that someone within the 21-day period with no symptoms can travel freely. Already there have been multiple "scares" in England, Hong Kong & even North Carolina. It's just a matter of time before *confirmed* cases show up outside Africa.

a reply to: soficrow

originally posted by: soficrow
Also, the CDC sent out physician alerts a while ago, advising doctors to be on the lookout. ...So the US is covering butt whilst pushing denial.

Except on the issue of boarder control.

Kind of hard to be on the lookout, if all you do is rely upon self-reporting from those who think they might be sick.

originally posted by: pmburk
The wedding wasn't a cover story... it and their return trip to the US were planned months in advance. This is direct from family members.

I do agree it has spread and I also question the method(s) through which it is being transmitted, as this doctor was supposedly meticulous following protocol.....I do believe it is inevitable it will eventually spread to other countries (if it has not already). Maybe not a catastrophic outbreak, but it will spread. ...I think it is highly likely that someone within the 21-day period with no symptoms can travel freely. Already there have been multiple "scares" in England, Hong Kong & even North Carolina. It's just a matter of time before *confirmed* cases show up outside Africa.

Thanks for the info about the wedding. Important. S&


To pmburk AND a reply to: loam

"Border control" is nothing more than a public relations device - ineffective except to reassure. And for the record, quarantine is equally ineffective, but more damaging. True, infected people can cross the world long before they become symptomatic - so educating doctors to be on the alert is critical. But in that context, I think volunteers, missionaries and families of same will be very alert and responsible - but business people will be more inclined to blow off the early symptoms as travel fatigue or overwork and keep moving and working til they can't (that's 5 days of contagion). Then they'd go to private hospitals and we'd never know - until random cases start appearing.

a reply to: soficrow

I agree... I know myself, and since the initial symptoms tend to be vague, I can see/understand blowing it off as fatigue, a cold, etc. Anyone who has been in those areas of the world must be extremely diligent about any potential symptom.

I see that SIM USA & Samaritan's Purse are evacuating personnel. Says they are being monitored while evacuation logistics are determined. Makes you wonder how many of those people could potentially have been exposed & not showing symptoms.

a reply to: pmburk

Yes.

a reply to: soficrow

or pull back and re-group,,cause apparently they have not been given the resourses, too do any more damned good.

Canada Repsonds To Ebola OutBreak

Wow it says at the end 700 people have died from this outbreak already.

Anybody watch the "The Last Ship" to see how a catastrophic pandemic could play out ?

a reply to: soficrow

Novel Zaire Ebola Sub-Clade In Guinea and Sierra Leone

The June Sierra Leone sequences have evidence of some drift from the March sequences from Guinea. A prior Zaire sub-clade, which was found in apes and a chimpanzee and was associated with an outbreak in Gabon in 2002 had strong evidence of recombination, which raises concerns of more evolution in the current sub-clade, which has produced a record number of reported Ebola cases and deaths.

a reply to: loam

Thanks loam - Niman's work echoes the results of a study published in the New England Journal Of Medicine in April, which results of course were questioned. But Niman calls it a "sub-clade" not new clade or strain... It's different in any event.

Emergence of Zaire Ebola Virus Disease in Guinea - Preliminary Report.

In March 2014, the World Health Organization was notified of an outbreak of a communicable disease characterized by fever, severe diarrhea, vomiting, and a high fatality rate in Guinea. Virologic investigation identified Zaire ebolavirus (EBOV) as the causative agent. Full-length genome sequencing and phylogenetic analysis showed that EBOV from Guinea forms a separate clade in relationship to the known EBOV strains from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Gabon. Epidemiologic investigation linked the laboratory-confirmed cases with the presumed first fatality of the outbreak in December 2013. This study demonstrates the emergence of a new EBOV strain in Guinea.

PMID: 24738640

Sharing some information on Dr. Brantly and his family. They sound like very dedicated people with young children. I hope their wait during the incubation period passes with them remaining in good health and that he is able to recover.

I am wondering if there is a possibility he will be taken to Germany where a hospital had agreed to treat some patients. The last update I saw was that he may have improved slightly over the past 24 hours but remained critical. The newswires are on fire with Ebola stories. The world is waking up to the nightmare in Africa.

Oh God Help Me! U.S Doctor Fighting Ebola In Liberia Prays

The Texas-trained doctor says he is “terrified” of the disease progressing further, according to Dr David Mcray, the director of maternal-child health at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth, where Brantly completed a four-year residency.

“I’m praying fervently that God will help me survive this disease,” Brantly said in an email Monday to Mcray. He also asked that prayers be extended for Nancy Writebol, an American co-worker who also has fallen ill with Ebola.

Brantly “went into Ebola exhausted” from treating Ebola patients, Mcray said after speaking with him Monday. His prognosis is grave and efforts to evacuate him to Europe for treatment have been thwarted because of concerns expressed by countries he would have to fly over en route to any European destination, Mcray said.

When Ebola spread from neighboring Guinea into Liberia, Brantly and his wife, Amber, re-evaluated their commitment, but decided to stay in West Africa with their children, ages three and five.

Amber Brantly and the children departed for a wedding in the U.S. just days before Brantly fell ill and quarantined himself.

They are currently staying with family in Abilene and, while not subject to quarantine, are monitoring their temperatures for an early sign of viral infection, a City of Abilene spokeswoman said.

Full article at Newspot Nigeria

Forgive the crashing ignorance in a portion of my previous post in this thread.

This was posted recently:

A dose of “experimental serum” arrived in Liberia to be tried on a U.S. charity worker struggling for her life — but there was only enough for one of the two infected workers, so Dr. Kent Brantly asked that it be used on his colleague, the group Samaritan’s Purse said Thursday.

Dr. Brantly, a doctor with the group who was also infected, tried an alternative treatment, using blood transfused from a young survivor of the virus.

“Yesterday, an experimental serum arrived in the country, but there was only enough for one person. Dr. Brantly asked that it be given to Nancy Writebol,” Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan’s Purse, said in a statement.

Only Enough for One: Experimental Ebola Serum Used on U.S. Patient

What a class act this person is, he is the type of person we need more of in this world.

^ I was coming to post a similar article from our local news station. I think it speaks volumes of his character that he asked the serum go to her first. The article also says that his condition has worsened overnight.

www.wfaa.com...

a reply to: loam

Here is an update with Dr. Brantly with today's date, July 31 2014: www.star-telegram.com...

a reply to: nOraKat

An amazing human being.

a reply to: loam

Breaking News in my local area, Atlanta Ga. Emory Hospital.


I live a 2 hrs drive from Emory...on our local news they are saying the patient is already in house. I'm confused from what little news I can find online.

Updated: 5:34 p.m. Thursday, July 31, 2014 | Posted: 2:12 p.m. Thursday, July 31, 2014
Ebola patient to be treated at Emory University Hospital

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ATLANTA —

Emory University Hospital officials said they have been informed that there are plans to transfer a patient with the Ebola virus infection to a special containment unit at their facility.

The Hospital has a special isolation unit set up in collaboration with the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to treat patients with serious infectious diseases.

A spokeswoman told Channel 2 Action News she did not know when the patient would arrive, but confirmed the patient is from west Africa. The Associated Press reported the patient is an American aid worker.

"It is physically separate from other patient areas and has unique equipment and infrastructure that provide an extraordinarily high level of clinical isolation," a spokesman said in a release.

The hospital said doctors, nurses and staff are trained in procedures to handle this type of patient.

The hospital is only one of four such facilities in the country. www.wsbtv.com...

I'll keep looking for any updates. They may be wrong...on local TV in reporting ebola patient is inhouse. Atlanta is also one of the 3 cities that has direct flights from Africa to the United States. I wonder if they brought the patient in through Atlanta airport?

Des

Statement released by Dr. Kent Brantly's wife, Amber.

BOONE, N.C., July 31, 2014 -The following is a statement from Amber Brantly, the wife of Dr. Kent Brantly, the American doctor with Ebola:

“I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to the many people who have reached out to me and my family during this difficult time. Thank you to our good friends and thousands more who have been in constant prayer and fasting for Kent’s deliverance from this disease. Also, thank you to Samaritan’s Purse for their warmth, professionalism and support they have extended to us.

“I remain hopeful and believing that Kent will be healed from this dreadful disease. I am grateful for the daily reports I receive from his doctors on the ground. He is strong and peaceful and confident in the love of Jesus Christ, which is his sustenance right now.

“Many people have been asking how I am doing. The children and I are physically fine.  We had left Liberia prior to Kent’s exposure to the virus. I am always anxiously awaiting any news from Liberia regarding Kent’s condition. Through the mountain tops and the valleys of this ordeal, I have been given a peace that comes from my relationship with my God. Jesus remains the Rock that I lean on. I feel strengthened each passing hour by your prayers. Through letters and comments, we have felt God’s love and comfort poured out to us from literally every corner of the world.

“During our time in Texas, the children and I have enjoyed the reunion of family. Our kids have been a welcome relief and distraction to us all, reminding us of our joy and hope.

“I have been encouraged by the Writebol family and their bravery during this situation. They have kindly reached out to me and offered their full support and prayers as we walk this road together.

“I ask for your continued prayers for Kent, Nancy and the many others who are suffering.”

Source

I am so glad the resources have been brought together to bring him back to the US where he can receive the best treatment available.