Ebola thread: Chill out if you want to discuss it.

[XDaDePsak]

Swine flu was a lot different. It was airborne and spread much more easily than how Ebola does. I remember I went to China during Swine Flu, and I'll never forget seeing about 75% of the people at the airport wearing masks and gloves. It totally shocked me.

Swine Flu infected something like 1/5 of the Earth's population in 2009. It didn't kill any more people than the typical flu strain does. The only thing that made it stand out and scare people is instead of just killing the elderly, infants and the sick which is what normal flu strains do, it was killing perfectly healthy young adults.

Ebola may not be as contagious as the flu, but it has an incredibly high mortality rate and will kill you regardless of your health or age. And it will kill you in an extremely horrific manner.

 

[Chinaux]

Swine Flu infected something like 1/5 of the Earth's population in 2009. It didn't kill any more people than the typical flu strain does. The only thing that made it stand out and scare people is instead of just killing the elderly, infants and the sick which is what normal flu strains do, it was killing perfectly healthy young adults.

Ebola may not be as contagious as the flu, but it has an incredibly high mortality rate and will kill you regardless of your health or age. And it will kill you in an extremely horrific manner.

Swine flu didn't kill healthy adults. It also just killed elderly and young children.

Ebola however, like you said, will kill you in a gruesome manner regardless, but will never spread globally unless some mutation/adaptation/human mistake happens. But still the odds of any of us getting it are like winning the lottery then walking out and getting hit by a car.

 

[Muttley]

Also, loading up on Vitamin C doesn't prevent or stop the common cold, let alone ebola.

For real. Swear to God, the things some people say.

 

[Muttley]

Sorry, internet did something weird and double posted. Please delete

 

[Nerf Herder EX]

Also, loading up on Vitamin C doesn't prevent or stop the common cold, let alone ebola.

Well you should still get some VC. You don't want Ebola and scurvy. That would just be hell.

 

[XDaDePsak]

Swine flu didn't kill healthy adults. It also just killed elderly and young children.

"Swine flu investigators in Mexico are trying to understand why some young adults died rapidly from influenza infections that usually kill people who are very young or very old." - bloomberg

"The H1N1 pandemic virus that took the world by storm in 2009 may have had an unexpected accomplice. Some of the thousands who died may have been victims of their own immune systems, suggests a paper appearing in Nature Medicine today. The study provides a possible answer to one of the most baffling questions since the virus appeared in the spring of last year: Why did the virus cause most damage in 20- to 50-year-olds—who are generally the healthiest—while sparing the very young and the very old?" - sciencemag

"59% of all in-hospital deaths occurred in previously healthy people." - wikipedia / scientific literature​

 

[mimgrim]

As someone who lives in Texas, I'm not even remotely worried about this "pandemic". Emphasis on quotation marks.

 

[LarsINTJ]

 

[Chinaux]

"Swine flu investigators in Mexico are trying to understand why some young adults died rapidly from influenza infections that usually kill people who are very young or very old." - bloomberg

"The H1N1 pandemic virus that took the world by storm in 2009 may have had an unexpected accomplice. Some of the thousands who died may have been victims of their own immune systems, suggests a paper appearing in Nature Medicine today. The study provides a possible answer to one of the most baffling questions since the virus appeared in the spring of last year: Why did the virus cause most damage in 20- to 50-year-olds—who are generally the healthiest—while sparing the very young and the very old?" - sciencemag

"59% of all in-hospital deaths occurred in previously healthy people." - wikipedia / scientific literature​

Sorry, I was misinformed. I'm glad I didn't catch swine flu then

 

[Pachinkosam]

As someone who lives in Texas, I'm not even remotely worried about this "pandemic". Emphasis on quotation marks.

I have caution though I just want to be home all day away from Ebola.

 

[XDaDePsak]

Spanish nursing staff resigns to avoid treating Ebola cases
Carlos III Hospital in Madrid, the health center where Ebola victim Teresa Romero is being treated, is having to draft in extra staff given that nurses are refusing to work with cases – or suspected cases – of the virus, claiming that safety conditions are not adequate.

 

[LarsINTJ]

It's much easier to avoid infection from an Ebola patient than a Flu patient. The virus is not airborne, it only spreads via bodily fluids. Disposable gloves and frequent hand-washing is quite adequate, just remember not to touch your face, basic hygiene. Most people who contract Ebola recklessly come into very close contact with infected fluids/surfaces

 

[XDaDePsak]

Officials Admit a ‘Defeat’ by Ebola in Sierra Leone
FREETOWN, Sierra Leone — Acknowledging a major “defeat” in the fight against Ebola, international health officials battling the epidemic in Sierra Leone approved plans on Friday to help families tend to patients at home, recognizing that they are overwhelmed and have little chance of getting enough treatment beds in place quickly to meet the surging need.

 

[LarsINTJ]

Officials Admit a ‘Defeat’ by Ebola in Sierra Leone
FREETOWN, Sierra Leone — Acknowledging a major “defeat” in the fight against Ebola, international health officials battling the epidemic in Sierra Leone approved plans on Friday to help families tend to patients at home, recognizing that they are overwhelmed and have little chance of getting enough treatment beds in place quickly to meet the surging need.

...maybe because aid workers are being shunned/murdered and locals are continuing to do exactly what they're advised not to if they wish to avoid spreading the easily contained virus.

 

[XDaDePsak]

...maybe because aid workers are being shunned/murdered and locals are continuing to do exactly what they're advised not to if they wish to avoid spreading the easily contained virus.

Human error exists in many forms. Don't think Americans wouldn't be prone to their own form of mismanaging containment.

Imagine some dude who has an arrest warrant gets ebola? Or an illegal immigrant? Some people might take their chances before 'turning themselves in' so to speak. People can be stupid and selfish, and that's not something usually taken into account in our assessment of how well we can contain an outbreak.

 

[LarsINTJ]

A follow-up from the big-chatty-forehead.

 

[FalKoopa]

...maybe because aid workers are being shunned/murdered and locals are continuing to do exactly what they're advised not to if they wish to avoid spreading the easily contained virus.

Apparently, 10% of the ebola victims are the medical staff themselves. The hospitals are already reeling due to the lack of beds and this is just compounding the problem.

 

[Tino]

The first I've heard about the news, I became concerned for my family members living there, specifically in Arlington, which is about 20 miles away from Dallas. And even though the CDC says that the chances of the virus spreading across the country are very low, they still can't afford to take any chances. It's bad enough that West Africa is going through hell with the virus; there's already more than 4,000 people dead from it as of now...

 

[XDaDePsak]

Texas nurse tests positive for Ebola, 1st Ebola transmission in U.S.

A female nurse at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas has tested positive for Ebola after a preliminary test, officials said.

 

[2004Zilla]

Now we're all going to get Ebola. I am currently hiding in my bunker in my backyard with a sniper rifle and am ready to no-scope the Ebola-infected zombies that try to break in.

 

[Smashbro596]

of all the diseases... ebola sounds the scariest... but smash 4 can help with lonliness if we go under lockdown... (or my handy computer. )

 

[Lord of Boxes]

Yeah, I'll be fine here in Ohio. Until news comes reasonably near, I'll take it easy

 

[Tino]

Unless there's a confirmed case anywhere in South Carolina, I'm not concerned at all...however I still pray for my other family members in the Dallas-Fort Worth area hoping their days won't be numbered.

 

[XDaDePsak]

The UN says the ebola outbreak must be controlled within 60 days or else the world faces an "unprecedented" situation for which there is no plan. The United Nations made the stark warning as it warned the disease "is running faster than us and it is winning the race".

 

[Jason the Yoshi]

I wouldn't worry. One of my high school buddies I called on FaceTime last night plays basketball in Texas and he said that they're starting to get it under control.

 

[SomewhatMystia]

Here's an article that may or may not put everyone at some kind of ease.

 

[XDaDePsak]

I wouldn't worry. One of my high school buddies I called on FaceTime last night plays basketball in Texas and he said that they're starting to get it under control.

What do you mean by under control exactly?

Breaking news:

2nd person tests positive for Ebola

DALLAS, TX (WFLA) -
A second health care worker at a Dallas hospital who provided care for the first Ebola patient diagnosed in the U.S. has tested positive for the disease, the Texas Department of State Health Services said Wednesday.

 

[XDaDePsak]

Here's an article that may or may not put everyone at some kind of ease.

As someone who actually understands a thing or two about ebola because I've been following it closesly, I can say with 100% confidence that the article you have linked is absolutely full of ****.

Especially the first two points. It is not almost impossible to catch at all.

One guy in Dallas caught it and already two nurses have caught it as a result. And they're medically trained professionals who have at least level 2 biological security suits on.

Do you think they were french kissing the patient or dousing their bare hands in blood?

If there ever is an outbreak, people who write and link absolute lies like that will be responsible for many deaths in the US of people who will think ebola is difficult to catch when it's not hard to catch at all.

And btw, an R0 of 2 means that for every person that gets it, that means at least 2 others will get it. As long as the R0 remains at 1 or above, then ebola will never be stopped. 2 is plenty high.

Basically ebola having an R0 of 2 means that the number of infected people will double every 3 weeks. It started with 1 patient and has doubled about 13 times so far. It only needs to double 20 more times to infect the entire world.

"Ebola is spreading exponentially, with the number of cases doubling every 3 weeks. It all started with a single infected 2 year old boy. To get from one case to 8000 there have been 13 doublings: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024, 2048, 4096, 8192. (Of course it doesn't spread exactly like this, some cases infect dozens of people, others infect none, but it kind of averages out.) To infect the entire world will take 33 doublings. So we've had 13 of the 33 doublings needed to infect the entire world, which is about 40 percent of the required doublings. So from Ebola's point of view, it's 40 percent along the way of it's chain of transmission to infect the world. Or to put it another way, at the current rate of spreading, everyone in the world will be infected in another 60 weeks." source
​

Of course the R0 should theoretically be lower in the west because of our superior infrastructure and medical understanding, but so far it looks like we have an R0 approaching 2 even in a Texas hospital settings where the nurses are wearing biological security suits. If ebola was outside the hospital, and if people believed the lies you are spreading about how it's so hard to catch ebola, then that sort of misinformation would be catastrophically deadly and would ensure a high R0.

 

[Jason the Yoshi]

What do you mean by under control exactly?

Breaking news:

2nd person tests positive for Ebola

DALLAS, TX (WFLA) -
A second health care worker at a Dallas hospital who provided care for the first Ebola patient diagnosed in the U.S. has tested positive for the disease, the Texas Department of State Health Services said Wednesday.

It's a long story, and it's gonna involve science, but here it goes

So the liquid part of blood is called Plasma. Plasma contains a lot of things, especially antigens and antibodies. A guy down in Texas who survived to be rid of Ebola just donated some of his plasma to the hospital since his plasma contains antigens and antibodies that recognize and destroy Ebola viruses so they never become a problem again. This basically confirms that the plasma can be sent into the infected patients body to make them feel better faster since they now have antigens that recognize and kill the Ebola virus on the spot. This clearly states that we're getting somewhere, and the tides are turning.

 

[XDaDePsak]

It's a long story, and it's gonna involve science, but here it goes

So the liquid part of blood is called Plasma. Plasma contains a lot of things, especially antigens and antibodies. A guy down in Texas who survived to be rid of Ebola just donated some of his plasma to the hospital since his plasma contains antigens and antibodies that recognize and destroy Ebola viruses so they never become a problem again. This basically confirms that the plasma can be sent into the infected patients body to make them feel better faster since they now have antigens that recognize and kill the Ebola virus on the spot. This clearly states that we're getting somewhere, and the tides are turning.

There's a fairly huge difference between "having a viable treatment for ebola" and "having ebola under control".

 

[Jason the Yoshi]

There's a fairly huge difference between "having a viable treatment for ebola" and "having ebola under control".

If they keep using the technique of donating anti Ebola antigens, then the problem may as well be solved before things get too late.

As someone who actually understands a thing or two about ebola because I've been following it closesly, I can say with 100% confidence that the article you have linked is absolutely full of ****.

Especially the first two points. It is not almost impossible to catch at all.

One guy in Dallas caught it and already two nurses have caught it as a result. And they're medically trained professionals who have at least level 2 biological security suits on.

Do you think they were french kissing the patient or dousing their bare hands in blood?

If there ever is an outbreak, people who write and link absolute lies like that will be responsible for many deaths in the US of people who will think ebola is difficult to catch when it's not hard to catch at all.

And btw, an R0 of 2 means that for every person that gets it, that means at least 2 others will get it. As long as the R0 remains at 1 or above, then ebola will never be stopped. 2 is plenty high.

Basically ebola having an R0 of 2 means that the number of infected people will double every 3 weeks. It started with 1 patient and has doubled about 13 times so far. It only needs to double 20 more times to infect the entire world.

"Ebola is spreading exponentially, with the number of cases doubling every 3 weeks. It all started with a single infected 2 year old boy. To get from one case to 8000 there have been 13 doublings: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024, 2048, 4096, 8192. (Of course it doesn't spread exactly like this, some cases infect dozens of people, others infect none, but it kind of averages out.) To infect the entire world will take 33 doublings. So we've had 13 of the 33 doublings needed to infect the entire world, which is about 40 percent of the required doublings. So from Ebola's point of view, it's 40 percent along the way of it's chain of transmission to infect the world. Or to put it another way, at the current rate of spreading, everyone in the world will be infected in another 60 weeks." source
​

Of course the R0 should theoretically be lower in the west because of our superior infrastructure and medical understanding, but so far it looks like we have an R0 approaching 2 even in a Texas hospital settings where the nurses are wearing biological security suits. If ebola was outside the hospital, and if people believed the lies you are spreading about how it's so hard to catch ebola, then that sort of misinformation would be catastrophically deadly and would ensure a high R0.

Actually, as a second year college student of Anatomy and Physiology, I can tell you that the article is not biased in any way, and you are simply suffering from a severe case of Paranoia from this. African doctors only have the experience of elementary school nurses, compared to them, American doctors are Einstein, and Ebola hasn't even wiped out West Africa yet. It may be 60 days before the deadline, but for American doctors, that's plenty of time to solve the problem

 

[TimeSmash]

Spanish nursing staff resigns to avoid treating Ebola cases
Carlos III Hospital in Madrid, the health center where Ebola victim Teresa Romero is being treated, is having to draft in extra staff given that nurses are refusing to work with cases – or suspected cases – of the virus, claiming that safety conditions are not adequate.

A little ****ed up since they took the Hippocratic Oath, but equally ****ed up that the proper PPE isn't being provided. Lose-lose situation much??

 

[XDaDePsak]

Actually, as a second year college student of Anatomy and Physiology, I can tell you that the article is not biased in any way, and you are simply suffering from a severe case of Paranoia from this. African doctors only have the experience of elementary school nurses, compared to them, American doctors are Einstein, and Ebola hasn't even wiped out West Africa yet. It may be 60 days before the deadline, but for American doctors, that's plenty of time to solve the problem

Two American nurses likely caught ebola from a single guy. If this is what "Einstein" looks like in a controlled 1st world hospital setting, then we're not going to do very well.

Also, don't brag about being a second year college student. You're not the only person here who has taken college biology and anatomy. The amount of learnin' you've likely gotten in the one year you've completed is nothing to write home about, and definitely nothing to even attempt to hold over anyone else. Seriously -- you don't realize how goofy it sounds to be bragging about one year of college. The classes you took last year don't even qualify you to be a receptionist at a clinic. Don't oversell yourself.

I mean if we're going to brag about our schooling: As the former editor in chief of of one of the largest college newspapers in the country, I can tell you that article is indeed very biased.

 

[Jason the Yoshi]

Two American nurses caught ebola from a single guy. If this is what "Einstein" look like then we're not going to do very well.

Also, don't brag about being a second year college student. You're not the only person here who has taken college biology and anatomy. The amount of learnin' you've likely gotten in the one year you've completed is nothing to write home about, and definitely nothing to even attempt to hold over anyone else. Seriously -- you don't realize how goofy it sounds to be bragging about one year of college.

I mean if we're going to brag about our schooling: As the former editor in chief of of one of the largest college newspapers in the country, I can tell you that article is indeed very biased.

People do make mistakes, and even some of the sources YOU provided say the exact same thing as the article. And "Former editor in chief of college newspapers" is COMPLETELY off topic compared to someone who takes Anatomy in college, especially since you're wrong, this is my THIRD YEAR OF EXPERIENCE in the fields of anatomy, and that I've known about Ebola for SIX years. The fact that Ebola is only transmitted through body fluids goes against what you said about the two nurses, so the nurses simply made a mistake while working on the patient that they're not telling us. Something can be done now that they're using survivors blood plasma to deliver anti Ebola antigens to patients. Quit spreading your paranoid pessimistic bull ****!

 

[XDaDePsak]

The fact that Ebola is only transmitted through body fluids goes against what you said about the two nurses,

Quote me exactly. Tell me exactly what I said that was incorrect.

And "Former editor in chief of college newspapers" is COMPLETELY off topic

Having a firm grasp of the English language (Which you clearly don't -- I will demonstrate this if you follow my previous request and quote me where I'm allegedly wrong about the nurses) is a vital aspect of the discussion we are having.

Especially important and relevant is knowing the difference between hard news (objective; facts) and an editorial viewpoint (subjective; opinion; related to bias). This article was written in an editorial style.

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

I'm really worried about getting KPC at the NIH while I get treated for my ebola.

 

[Jason the Yoshi]

Quote me exactly. Tell me exactly what I said that was incorrect.



Having a firm grasp of the English language (Which you clearly don't -- I will demonstrate this if you follow my previous request and quote me where I'm allegedly wrong about the nurses) is a vital aspect of the discussion we are having.

Especially important and relevant is knowing the difference between hard news (objective; facts) and an editorial viewpoint (subjective; opinion; related to bias). This article was written in an editorial style.

You said it yourself in one of the sources you provided which said that its only contracted through bodily fluids.

And I know how to differentiate between news and editorials, having recent experience in such matter, but the article pretty much covers everything my anatomy professor has said about Ebola.

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

As someone who actually understands a thing or two about ebola because I've been following it closesly, I can say with 100% confidence that the article you have linked is absolutely full of ****.

Especially the first two points. It is not almost impossible to catch at all.

One guy in Dallas caught it and already two nurses have caught it as a result. And they're medically trained professionals who have at least level 2 biological security suits on.

Do you think they were french kissing the patient or dousing their bare hands in blood?

If there ever is an outbreak, people who write and link absolute lies like that will be responsible for many deaths in the US of people who will think ebola is difficult to catch when it's not hard to catch at all.

And btw, an R0 of 2 means that for every person that gets it, that means at least 2 others will get it. As long as the R0 remains at 1 or above, then ebola will never be stopped. 2 is plenty high.

Basically ebola having an R0 of 2 means that the number of infected people will double every 3 weeks. It started with 1 patient and has doubled about 13 times so far. It only needs to double 20 more times to infect the entire world.

"Ebola is spreading exponentially, with the number of cases doubling every 3 weeks. It all started with a single infected 2 year old boy. To get from one case to 8000 there have been 13 doublings: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024, 2048, 4096, 8192. (Of course it doesn't spread exactly like this, some cases infect dozens of people, others infect none, but it kind of averages out.) To infect the entire world will take 33 doublings. So we've had 13 of the 33 doublings needed to infect the entire world, which is about 40 percent of the required doublings. So from Ebola's point of view, it's 40 percent along the way of it's chain of transmission to infect the world. Or to put it another way, at the current rate of spreading, everyone in the world will be infected in another 60 weeks." source
​

Of course the R0 should theoretically be lower in the west because of our superior infrastructure and medical understanding, but so far it looks like we have an R0 approaching 2 even in a Texas hospital settings where the nurses are wearing biological security suits. If ebola was outside the hospital, and if people believed the lies you are spreading about how it's so hard to catch ebola, then that sort of misinformation would be catastrophically deadly and would ensure a high R0.

She wasn't wearing a biological security suit.

 

[XDaDePsak]

You said it yourself in one of the sources you provided which said that its only contracted through bodily fluids.

And I know how to differentiate between news and editorials, having recent experience in such matter, but the article pretty much covers everything my anatomy professor has said about Ebola.

Quote me or admit you're wrong.

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

The nurse, Nina Pham, wasn't wearing a biological security suit of any kind.