Nancy Writebol was disinfecting, and not in contact with the Ebola patients. Now I'm fretting

[Stratter5]

And Dr Brantly was experienced and wearing protective gear. I'm scared now, it seems easier to catch than I thought. Just what are the chances of a newly infected person getting on a plane out of there, not realising they're sick, and are they infectious at the 'cold/flu' stage, what if they sneezed in someone's face on the plane?

I think the key thing with the whole Ebola issue is that the situation in which it is currently spreading in west Africa is very, very different from the situation in the uk. We have greater resources and don't have to work against sizeable sections of the populations affected believing that it's witchcraft, etc.

In any case, the WHO say that you won't catch it unless you touch an infected person. So we can probably all resolve not to touch people who look like they've got seriously bad flu. And certainly to resist any urge to lick them, as Titsalina has pointed out. I know it's tempting, but we'll all just have to refrain for the time being.

I'm pleased I'm not Miley Cyrus. For many reasons.

Nancy Writebol was disinfecting, and not in contact with the Ebola patients
What was she disinfecting? She was disinfecting people/items who had been in contact with Ebola patients. Why was she doing that? Because you can catch Ebola from bedclothes or anything that has been in contact with an Ebola patient. She was doing a job that put her into contact with the Ebola virus and she sadly, but not at all mysteriously, caught it. There's nothing remarkable or strange or unexplained about it.

Just what are the chances of a newly infected person getting on a plane out of there, not realising they're sick, and are they infectious at the 'cold/flu' stage, what if they sneezed in someone's face on the plane?
Ebola incapacitates/kills very quickly and it is not easy to catch. It's only contagious when the person has symptoms and they are seriously ill very quickly. It's not spread like a cold - you need to actually touch the sweat, vomit, diarrhea, blood, urine, or semen or someone with it.

In the uk, you can be given supportive treatment (eg in high dependency/intensive care) to keep you alive while the virus runs it's course. Antibiotics counteract secondary infections.

Ebola is concerning, yes, but not terrifying. We have friends, though, who are visiting family in DRC this summer, and via Facebook I saw they'd changed their flights to come home via Egypt rather than Nigeria, just in case.

Stealth, that's not what WHO, CDC and others say (on treatment). You're right that the care is supportive, rather than specific to the virus. WHO are also the source of the information on transmmission while asymptomatic.

Mortality from the current outbreak is currently 55%, from what I've seen.

Which viruses are killed by antibiotics? I wasn't aware of that.

I'm a little past fretting, I'm worried. My husband and son are in the Atlanta area right now.

...and despite that, I still know logically that they aren't at risk.

Actually I have no idea about antibiotics/viruses, very sorry. I was told that as I was prescribed abs for ds who had a viral infection and that was the answer when I questioned it. I should have pushed harder as I've always been told the opposite and so was curious to learn that he thought differently!
The 70-90% of infected patients die was on the bbc radio a few days ago.

I think you are right that once you've caught it you only have a 10-50% chance of survival. Not good odds. Although most historical cases have been in Africa so perhaps the survival rate would be higher if there were to be an outbreak somewhere with better healthcare.

That the US want to fly their two citizens with the virus to Atlanta for treatment does perhaps suggest that they have reason to feel treatment in the US would be superior and offer a better chance of survival. It also suggests that the US is confident that the spread of the virus could be contained and that they are not a risk to other US citizens or the healthcare practitioners who will be treating them.

Regardless of the [probably] low risk here in the UK it is still an awful, and terrifying, virus and it is hard to see how the infection will be controlled so that it doesn't continue to spread across West Africa.

The death rate depends on the strain, I think. There are several strains, one of which has much higher mortality rates than the others. The last couple of outbreaks (in 2012) had c. 50% mortality rates according to the WHO information.

I have just spent 10 hours on a plane sitting next to someone who had just flown from Africa.

Should I be fretting?!

I'll admit that you completely threw me, Stealth! I can't find any sources for viral response to anti-bs - but antibiotics can be used as supportive care for viral infections. Viruses and bacteria are so different in how they operate.

Mortality with Ebola varies by outbreak/strain (and given that there are patients currently symptomatic there are not definitive mortality figures for this epidemic). What I've read is that it's currently 55% but I'm not sure how that's calculated.

Ahem just throwing the deliberate mistakes in so I know people are reading my posts
:o

Apparently men who survive Ebola can remain infection via their semen for up to 7 weeks. Although, it's easy enough to avoid catching it that way. No sex with men who've recently recovered from Ebola. That can go on the list alongside not licking people who look a bit peaky or anyone really.

Did you lick the person next to you capitola?

I avoided licking him, but there was extended touching as he was one of those 'both armrests are mine' types.

^I have just spent 10 hours on a plane sitting next to someone who had just flown from Africa.

Should I be fretting?! ^
From 'Africa'?

Do you have any idea how enormous Africa is? Was this person ANYWHERE near the outbreak?

Do you know how sick someone with Ebola is? Very.

There are 1.1 BILLION people in Africa. 1000 have been infected in this outbreak.

If you sat next to someone from an Ebola area who was desperately and critically ill with vomiting and diarrhoea or bleeding and they threw up on you, bled on you or you came into contact with their sweat and shit, then perhaps you should worry - but they would already be dead and you'd have already been traced and it'd be all over the world news that another person with Ebola had been on a plane.

So, no, no fretting required.

All this Ebola panic in the media is causing people with health anxiety to go into overdrive when in all likelihood they are in incredibly low risk groups.

I was joking MsAnthropic.

I am also glad that I am not Miley Cyrus, although I'm not sure how that is relevant.

the odds on dying from ebola in the UK are very, very small - and there is NOTHING you can do about this health issue. If you want to postpone your inevitable death as long as possible, worry about the bigger things and the ones you can change.

• look both ways when crossing the road
• don't smoke
• drive carefully
• don't sunbathe (no, that doesn't mean never going outside, just don't put yourself out to fry)
• don't drink too much
• don't eat too much, eat good food and move around a bit.

courage, serenity and wisdom, remember?

It absolutely infuriates me when the meeja report the normal and necessary precautions that the WHO and governments make whenever a public health threat is identified.

Not because they report it, but because they make out it is sinister that the meetings are taking place - you can hear the "IS THERE SOMETHING THEY ARE NOT TELLING US?" more loudly when they don't actually print it.

I worked with someone on the advisory committee for bird flu. It was dull as ditch water. But the 'myths and legends' part of the day was an absolute scream. They had to collect and/or imagine the worst newspaper headlines and write a release to counter them. And they didn't manage to imagine some of the 'better' headlines.

Ebola is only terrifying because, before it became more well known, it was used in a lot of telly series and movies as the 'killer bug that no one can cure and it eats your head' - even ER used it!

Now those storylines are being woven into the reality and people are scared!

And I am angry... pointlessly so as I can;t change anything!

Capitola Sorry!!

Worried about ebola?

s'alright! My sarcasm obv didn't translate!

I work in the NHS. My hospital trust has policies for the most unlikely of occurrences; hospitals blowing up, major terrorist attacks, blizzards, floods, Drs spontaneously combusting (I made that one up).

They have to have plans for everything so WHO having meetings means they're making plans just in case because they have to.

The paperwork and planning when swine flu was around was ludicrous but had to be done.

I'm not fre