Ebola.

[TheLovelyBoots]

I'm quite nervous. AIBU?

[TheLovelyBoots]

Its not all about us, and whether it gets to us.

Surely the aim with any infectious disease is containment.

[KnittedJimmyChoos]

Surely the aim with any infectious disease is containment

Yes one would have thought so.

Its a huge worry. For everyone.

[KnittedJimmyChoos]

No matter how poorley educated the people are they need to plough more resources into educucating them, the whole world should do this for everyones benefit.

[ThatBloodyWoman]

I suppose my point is that it isn't just an issue if it gets to us -its an issue here and now for the people its affecting.

I think some people, and this isn't necessarily directed at anyone on this thread, appear to think that its only important, or a concern , in terms of it reaching us in the more 'developed' world -that's all.

[TheLovelyBoots]

I disagree. In fact the developed world can probably cope with Ebola. I doubt the third world can.

[ThatBloodyWoman]

So there is no need for you to be nervous then TheLovelyBoots !

(great username btw!)

[JamNan]

Malaria is far more deadly but sadly no one seems to think twice about it.

According to WHO...
"In 2012, there were about 207 million malaria cases (with an uncertainty range of 135 million to 287 million) and an estimated 627,000 malaria deaths (with an uncertainty range of 473,000 to 789,000).

... In 2012, 90% of all malaria deaths occurred in the WHO African Region, mostly among children under 5 years of age."

[ethelb]

Hmm, the issue is differnt to SARS and bird flu as they were never particuarly infectious and were fairly unlikely to kill you. Ebola is very infectious. The reason it has not been a global problem before is that it kills so many people and makes them so ill that an outbreak usually kills/disables its hosts from travelling far enough to let it spread. Evolutionarily it is a slightly crap virus for that reason unlike the common cold which you can walk around with etc.

However, previously people in these areas have not have access to automated, petrol fuelled transport which can take them a long way from the initial infection site before they get symptoms. That is actually quite worying.

The west is not particuarly well set up to deal with serious outbreaks of infectious disease as we have spent money eliminating deadly infectious diseases that could infect us ie smallpox and polio. That is great, but greedy western nations have not bothered to take infectious disease in other parts of the world seriously enough.

Result = the west being badly equiped to deal with a serious infectious epidemic from other parts of the world, that we were too busy worrying about our own problems to consider eliminating.

Already multiple resistant TB is a problem, and I am concerned that if anything did happen with Ebola that European healthcare systems would be ill-equiped to deal with as our health threats over the past 50years have been different.

[KnittedJimmyChoos]

Already multiple resistant TB is a problem


eth another great post thanks!

do you think its worth getting tb jabs?

[ethelb]

Ther eis quite a lot of debate aorudn TB jobs. They are not thought to only be effective in small baies ie all of us who got our BSG as teenagers may have less immunity than previously thought. There is quite a lot of research into developing a new one at the moment, but it is a complicated pathogen to immunise against, as I understand.

[ethelb]

*There is quite a lot of debate around TB jabs.

[TheLovelyBoots]

JamNan, I agree with what you say about malaria - it's a perverse set of priorities that allow it to flourish in 2014.

But, you can recover from malaria.

Are we not already getting TB jabs? Are you referring to an adult booster?

[Northernlurker]

I was listening to PM on Radio 4 today and they discussed Ebola. I have to say it was pretty reassuring (if you're sitting in the UK!). We do have really good public health monitoring in this country and they are going to be watchful.

What did make me cry though was the news that one of the doctors treating Ebola in Africa has died. 'Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lays down his life for his friends'

[TheLovelyBoots]

You mean the Ugandan doctor, northern? The American doctor is still fighting, as I understand it.

[ethelb]

What did make me cry sad though was the news that one of the doctors treating Ebola in Africa has died. 'Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lays down his life for his friends'

Its true. It used to happen in this country. There are many examples of Drs and pharmacists (who used to be a bit more forntline before the nHS for people who couldn't afford Drs) etc who died of infectious disease treating patients.

[Northernlurker]

here It was a Dr Khan who has died most recently and ethelb is right - many have gone before him. It's truly heroic imo.

[ThatBloodyWoman]

I think we are less concerned about malaria, because we aren't at risk.....

[softlysoftly]

TB jabs are not routinely given now as it wasn't thought cost effective. They are only given in high risk areas.

I know this to my peril after DD2 was hospitalised at a year with suspected TB as FIL had it and she was very ill. Cue a very long route of testing for all of us and eventual vaccine for those not immune - scarily 3 year old DD1 was found to be exposed, immune but no active TB TF!

[MorphineDreams]

sisters I played that too, quite scary how it spreads

[KnittedJimmyChoos]

Are we not already getting TB jabs? Are you referring to an adult booster?


No. Im my area its borderline, a hosp to the left does them at birth - the one to the right does not

Is malaria contagious? I wasn't aware it was.....


I think your right bloody we are not really at risk of earth quakes here either so I admit, I dont worry about them too much, nor tsunamis, or volcanoes, or tornadoes, or hurricanes etc...

[EverythingIsAwesome]

I never worry about these things, I was not at all concerned about swine flu etc (didnt vax my kids). This, I am petrified about :( It's the 90% death rate that worries me most, and you can catch it by being sneezed on.

[oneandnotlonelyk]

Yanbu. I think flights to/from western Africa should be stopped. There are already a lot of health tourists from there 'lagos express' and if there's no cure and 90% of those infected die, we should be doing all we can to prevent its spread.

[AuntieStella]

"Is malaria contagious? I wasn't aware it was"

Malaria is contagious via a vector - the mosquito. People arriving in UK with malaria do not pose a public health risk as the mosquitos do not live here.

But they used to. And parts of Britian used to be malarial. Given climate change, it is quite possible the vector mosquito will return, and then it's only a matter of time.

[Northernlurker]

The 90% mortality is the current data based on where it currently spreads I think. In a developed world hospital I assume your chances would be considerably better than 90%.

[oneandnotlonelyk]

I'm not sure the chances would be better here Northern, there is no treatment or cure, just rehydration sachets and a fluid drip...