Ebola and the US Aid Workers
Offline In spite of what the article says, one can not help but wonder if that risk is as low as they claim. Just saying.
www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-28661616
Ebola trial drug given to 'improving' US aid workers
Two US aid workers who contracted Ebola in Liberia appear to be improving after receiving an experimental drug, officials have said.
But it is not clear if the ZMapp drug, which has only been tested on monkeys, can be credited with their improvement.
Dr Kent Brantly was flown home for treatment on Saturday. His colleague Nancy Writebol arrived back in the city of Atlanta on Tuesday.
Since February, 887 people have died of Ebola in four West African countries.
US National Security Adviser Susan Rice said on Tuesday that the risk of Ebola transmission in the US is "very low".
"We have in this country the protocols to isolate and manage any patient who may present with those symptoms of the disease," she said.
Meanwhile, another man is being tested for Ebola at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York after travelling to West Africa.
The hospital said he was in isolation and "was stable overnight and in good spirits".
The World Bank is allocating $200m (£120m) in emergency assistance for countries battling to contain the Ebola outbreak.
It is the world's deadliest outbreak to date and has centred on Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. There have also been two cases in the Nigerian city of Lagos, where eight people are currently in quarantine.
British Airways has temporarily suspended flights to and from Liberia and Sierra Leone until 31 August 2014 because of the health crisis, the airline said in a statement. It follows a similar suspension by two regional air carriers last week.
The virus spreads by contact with infected blood and bodily fluids. The current outbreak is killing between 50% and 60% of people infected.
There is no cure or vaccine for Ebola - but patients have a better chance of survival if they receive early treatment.
Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, says clinical trials are to start in September on an Ebola vaccine that has shown promising results during tests on animals.
"By the middle to end of 2015, we'll be able to have some vaccine - at least to vaccinate health workers - who put themselves at considerable risk when they take care of these patients," he told the BBC's Newsday programme.
The US aid workers were treated with the ZMapp serum before their evacuation from Liberia.
According to a CNN report, quoting a doctor in Liberia, Dr Brantly's condition improved dramatically within an hour of receiving the drug.
“It is proof of a base and low mind for one to wish to think with the masses or majority, merely because the majority is the majority. Truth does not change because it is, or is not, believed by a majority of the people.”
― Giordano Bruno
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This one was in my local paper this morning :
www.commercialappeal.com/news/obama-resists-fast-tracking-ebola-drug-but-new-test-cleared
Obama resists fast-tracking Ebola drug, but new test cleared
Jake Godin, Newsy7:28 AM, Aug 7, 2014 The same day that President Obama told reporters at a U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit that the he wasn't ready to share any experimental Ebola treatments with West Africa, the FDA has approved a diagnostic test for the devastating virus. The drug Obama is talking about is called ZMapp and it was used to treat two Americans infected with Ebola before they were brought back to the States from West Africa. According to WebMD, ZMapp takes a long time to produce partly because of the the weeks it takes to grow its ingredients. That, combined with it's lack of FDA approval, means it's not quite ready for mass production. But even with Obama's announcement, it appears the FDA at least fast-tracked a diagnostic test for the virus. The Los Angeles Times reports that a previously unapproved Ebola test has been authorized by the FDA under a "special emergency-use provision" — although an actual vaccine is still a ways off with officials saying one won't be available until 2015. The diagnostic test is meant to detect the Zaire strain of Ebola, the same one that has infected more than 1,700 and killed as many as 932 people in Sierra Leon, Guinea, Liberia and Nigeria. A statement provided to health care workers by the FDA says it was authorized because, "At this time, no FDA-approved/cleared tests that identify the existence of the Ebola Zaire virus ... in clinical specimens are available." A new test is definitely a good start, but are there any treatments besides ZMapp on the horizon?“It is proof of a base and low mind for one to wish to think with the masses or majority, merely because the majority is the majority. Truth does not change because it is, or is not, believed by a majority of the people.”
― Giordano Bruno