NEWS: Death Toll Climbs From Ebola-Like Fever, page 1

posted on May, 16 2005 @ 12:38 PM

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The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday that Angola's Marburg fever outbreak is not over as the death toll from the disease climbed. The fever is spread by bodily fluids like blood, saliva, tears and sweat. There is no cure. A total of 123 people died in a Marburg epidemic in the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo in 1998-2000.

www.cnn.com
"We've seen new cases in new municipalities that don't have obvious links to earlier cases of Marburg. We are very concerned about the situation," WHO spokesperson Aphaluck Bhatiasevi told Reuters by phone from northern Uige province, the epicenter of the outbreak.

"We are trying to do as much tracing as possible. But some of the cases we have seen in the last 10 days don't have a clear link to previous cases," she said. "The outbreak is not over."

The death toll in the worst-recorded outbreak from the rare hemorrhagic fever has risen during the past 10 days to 292 -- out of the 336 known cases -- from 277, officials said.

Overcoming cultural barriers remains the biggest obstacle in the battle to contain the Ebola-like disease, Deputy Health Minister Jose Van Dunem said.

"We're working hard on social mobilization in communities in Uige, trying to motivate a change of behavior," Van Dunem told Reuters.

"We have some cultural problems. People think if they don't bathe the dead body then they are not properly putting them to rest," he said in an interview.

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This is what i personally find scary. In this day and age a viurs can go global in a day. It can do this because sick people travel on a planes and infect everyone in the airport.
Then the virus hitches a ride on a plane to it's new location. What would happen if this got to the U.S. or somewhere, were it could spread faster? How many could this thing kill?

Springer

posted on May, 20 2005 @ 08:55 AM

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I swear, even though we have the ability, the STUPIDITY and the lack of compassion for our fellows I doubt the Human race will blow itself out of existence, it will be a VIRUS or a FUNGUS that will do us in.

m...

Souljah

posted on May, 20 2005 @ 09:02 AM

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Just Typical!

While some people have no problem in assigning 500 billion dollars to a Military Budget - they cant send this money to the people that REALLY need it.

Wait - the GDP wont go UP if we help these Africans!

The GDP will go UP, if there are more wars, less rainforrest and more patients, diagnosed with cancer!

Thats the raw truth girls and boys - and "some ebola virus down there in a black hole called Africa, is not going to improve our business or our stocks on the market".

Thats how the World Today Works.

"The Sith" have taken over this "Republic" along time ago.....

Skadi_the_Evil_Elf

posted on May, 20 2005 @ 09:18 AM

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What I dont understand is why the hell the UN doesnt do something more agressive. It would go a long way to salvage their credibility. The Un could set up medicine clinics to work hard to fnd a cure.

What sickens me is that drug companies in Europe and America spend billions developing questionable drugs for non life threatening disease, or push these medications on the public making people believe they need them like anti depressants. How much better would their time and massive resources be diverted into studying and trying to cure this virus.

I heard that in Angola, the life expectancy, because of AIDS, has been reduced to 33 years. The human race has not had such short life spans since the stone age. Is that whats happening here in Africa? Disease is driving the people back into pre civilization?

Its not something that we should just throw money at. We need to forgive their debts, and instead of money send people and equipment over to cure diseases, and teach people there how to do it.

Africa seems to have the ability to constantly produce deadly new auper viruses, and thus, would be the ideal location for the west to send their germ experts to study and hopefully combat these diseases.

Africa has so much potential!

bigdog on_guard

posted on May, 22 2005 @ 02:40 PM

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Marburg is Ebola... named for the place it first appeared in Europe... a lab in Marburg, Germany. Ebola has something like a 98% mortality. The saving grace is that it kills the host so quickly it often remains within a small locale, and it doesn't survive for long outside the host. Viral loads spike just prior to death and this therefore is the most dangerous phase for health care providers. Everybody (even in North America) should be aware of how to take "universal precautions" especially EMTs, Police, Firefighters and Coroners and their associates. It is just a matter of time until it turns up in the population, either at an accident scene or an unwitnessed death. Improper procedures could quickly lead to a tragic spread of the virus.
There was an outbreak of Simian Haemorhagic Fever in Reston, in the U.S.
some years ago. I don't think that facility ever re-opened.
We all need to be aware, these things are not the exclusive property of the Third World, nor do they remain in isolation. Scientist have no idea how Ebola becomes active after being dormant for years, and until they find "the source" there is no telling where it may appear, nor what population it may strike. CDC has some info..

Be careful out there.

soficrow

posted on May, 22 2005 @ 03:27 PM

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Originally posted by bigdog on_guard
The saving grace is that it kills the host so quickly it often remains within a small locale, and it doesn't survive for long outside the host.

Good info - thanks. But the text says, "We've seen new cases in new municipalities that don't have obvious links to earlier cases of Marburg. We are very concerned about the situation." ...A number of old diseases have mutated to expand their transmission vectors - could this be happening with Marburg?

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