Ebola - the developing story

Ebola - What You're Not Being Told

There is something very, very important that the corporate media and public health officials are not telling you regarding the Ebola outbreak in west Africa.

SCG News,

31 July, 2014

The information I'm about to present here is frightening. There's really no way around that. However, I request that you do your very best to maintain a calm state of mind.

Right now in West Africa the worst Ebola outbreak in historyis in full swing and is jumping borders at an alarming rate. Already it has spread to four countries, Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and now Nigeria. This latest jump into Nigeria is particularly serious since the infected individual carried the virus by plane to Lagos Nigeria, a city with a population of over 21 million. Doctors without borders has referred to the outbreak as "out of control".

To make matters worse, there is something very, very important that the corporate media and public health officials are not telling you regarding this crisis.

You'll notice if you read virtually any mainstream article on the topic that they make a point of insisting that Ebola is only transferred by physical contact with bodily fluids. This is not true, at all.

A study conducted in 2012 showed that Ebola was able to travel between pigs and monkeys that were in separate cages and were never placed in direct contact.

Though the method of transmission in the study was not officially determined, one of the scientists involved, Dr. Gary Kobinger, from the National Microbiology Laboratory at the Public Health Agency of Canada, told BBC News that he believed that the infection was spread through large droplets that were suspended in the air.

"What we suspect is happening is large droplets; they can stay in the air, but not long; they don't go far," he explained. "But they can be absorbed in the airway, and this is how the infection starts, and this is what we think, because we saw a lot of evidence in the lungs of the non-human primates that the virus got in that way."

Translation: Ebola IS an airborne virus.

UPDATE: Someone pointed out that in medical terms, if the virus is transferred through tiny droplets in the air this would technically not be called an "airborne virus". Airborne, in medical terms would mean that the virus has the ability to stay alive without a liquid carrier. On one hand this is a question of semantics, and the point is well taken, but keep in mind that the study did not officially determine how the virus traveled through the air, it merely established that it does travel through the air. Doctor Kobinger's hypothesis regarding droplets of liquid is just that, a hypothesis. For the average person however what needs to be understood is very simple: if you are in a room with someone infected with Ebola, you are not safe, even if you never touch them or their bodily fluids, and this is not what you are being told by the mainstream media. Essentially I am using the word "airborne" as a layman term (which kind of makes sense, since I am a layman in this field).

Now I'm not going to speculate as to whether these so called "journalist" and public health agencies who keep repeating the official line regarding the means of transmission are lying, or are just participating in some massive display of synchronized incompetence, but what I will say, is that this shoddy reporting is most likely getting people killed right now, and may in fact put all of humanity in danger.

How so?

By convincing people that the virus cannot travel through air, important precautions that could reduce the spread of the virus are not being taken. For example the other passengers on the plane that traveled to Lagos, Nigeria were not quarantined.

To put this into context, Ebola kills between 50% and 90% of its victims, so the stakes are very, very high here.

NOTE: We have reported on the fact that Ebola can spread through the air in three separate articles since March of 2014, here, here and here, however the corporate media has continued to misrepresent the vectors of transmission.

This particular strain of Ebola is not Ebola Zaire. This is a new strain, and it may in fact be more dangerous than the Zaire variety. Not because of any difference in the symptoms (the symptoms are identical), but because this new virus seems to be harder to contain. Whether this is due to some characteristic of the virus itself or merely dumb luck is uncertain at this time, but the rate at which this outbreak has extended its range is unprecedented.

According to the CDC this virus is genetically 97% similar to the Zaire strain. However if you are interested in this virus' phylogenetic relationship (genetic lineage) to the Zaire strain you should look read "Phylogenetic Analysis of Guinea 2014 EBOV Ebolavirus Outbreak" on plos.org.

Another study by the New England Journal of medicine (this was the one referenced by the CDC) specifically names the parts of the genetic code which differ:

The three sequences, each 18,959 nucleotides in length, were identical with the exception of a few polymorphisms at positions 2124 (G→A, synonymous), 2185 (A→G, NP552 glycine→glutamic acid), 2931 (A→G, synonymous), 4340 (C→T, synonymous), 6909 (A→T, sGP291 arginine→tryptophan), and 9923 (T→C, synonymous).

Note that there doesn't yet seem to be a consensus as to what this new strain is called. One study referred to it as "Guinean EBOV", another as "Guinea 2014 EBOV Ebolavirus" and others are still referring to it as Zaire. Given that we can specifically name the points where the virus has mutated, using the old name is misleading.

Right now the question on everyone's minds is whether this virus will spread outside of Africa. Considering the fact that Ebola has a three week incubation period, can travel through the air, and has already hitchhiked onto an international flight, this is a very real possibility. There are some that are downplaying the probability of this outcome, and to be honest, I hope that they are right, but the simple fact of the matter is that these people are basing their assessment on the faulty premise that Ebola is not an airborne virus.

Now the first thing you might be feeling when looking at this situation is a sense of fear and helplessness, and while that's a perfectly normal reaction it's really not helpful. Instead we should be thinking in terms of practical steps we can take to influence the outcome.

One thing we can all do is to start confronting journalists and public officials who keep making false statements regarding the way Ebola spreads. Use the links to the original study, the BBC report from 2012 and this video to put them in their place.

We also need to confront the fact that there isn't a full out, coordinated, international effort to contain this. This is being treated like a sideshow but it has the very real potential to become a main event.

The doctors on the ground in West Africa don't have enough staff or resources to deal with this situation. It is absolutely inexcusable for the U.S. and the E.U. to be investing billions of tax payer dollars into their little power games in Ukraine and Syria (which are both in the process of escalating right now by the way) while Ebola is getting a foothold in Africa. Every available resource should be shifted to West Africa in order to contain and extinguish this epidemic right now.

This is serious. Call them, write them, heckle them in the streets if you have to, but don't allow them to ignore this issue. Make it impossible for them to pretend later that they didn't know.

Now whether or not official policy towards the Ebola crisis changes there are some precautions that you should take right now for yourself and your family.

1. Know where you would go if you needed to leave your home on short notice. If Ebola escapes Africa the last place you want to be is in a densely populated metropolitan area. It may be that the most practical destination for your family would be a rural area near your current home, but if you already have concerns about the government you are living under, and how they may handle a crisis like this, then you might want to start looking at alternatives. Finding an alternative location that suits your family's needs is something that requires a lot of time and research, so don't put this off. The primary characteristics you should be examining in an alternative destination are geography , political environment, climate, population density and visa terms and requirements. Ideally you would want to end up somewhere that is geographically isolated to some degree.

2. If you don't have passports for yourself and each of your dependents, get them now. This is not to say that you should leave your country, but you should have the means to do so. In countries where the Ebola outbreak is underway it is getting harder and harder to exit. Borders are being closed down. Flights are being cut off. This didn't happen right away, but you definitely don't want to be waiting for your passport to show up if Ebola arrives in your city.

3. Know what you would carry with you if you had to leave on short notice. Have those items ready, and have the luggage to carry them. It would be wise to consider buying a pack of surgical masks as part of this.

Now if you think about it, these preparations are wise steps to take regardless of whether the Ebola situation deteriorates or not. Knowing where you would go in an emergency, and having the means to get there on short notice is important for a wide variety of situations. The civilian population of Iraq, Syria, east Ukraine, and Gaza can attest to that.

Whatever you do don't let fear take control of your mind. Take the steps you can take now, monitor the situation calmly, and be prepared to adapt if necessary.

UPDATE: A number of people have requested that I comment on the fact that the Americans infected by Ebola are right now being flown into the U.S. My personal opinion is that this particular move will not lead to the virus getting out. This event is going to be highly scrutinized, and the isolation security should be at max. The real danger isn't in these highly controlled transfers and quarantines, but rather in the ongoing flow of air travel from these regions. Thirty five countries are merely one flight away from an Ebola zone right now.

Why is this random air travel more dangerous?

Because if it gets in when people aren't looking, it can spread before containment measures are put into place.

P.S. If you want to learn more about Ebola I highly recommend that you read "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston.

Breaking News: Deadly Ebola 

Virus Confirmed In Atlanta 

Georgia

Beforeitsnews,

31 July, 2014

According to many MSM, and Alternative news reports,  Emory University Hospital in Atlanta Georgia is setting up a special Isolation unit to accommodate a patient that has contracted the deadly Ebola disease within the next few days. 

According to many MSM, and Alternative news reports,  Emory University Hospital in Atlanta Georgia is setting up a special Isolation unit to accommodate a patient that has contracted the deadly Ebola disease within the next few days. 

Emory Healthcare to treat Ebola patient

Emory University Hospital is expected to receive a patient infected with the deadly Ebola virus within the next several days, the university announced Thursday.

It’s unclear when exactly the patient will arrive, according to a statement from Emory. The Clifton Road hospital has a specially built isolation unit to treat patients exposed to certain serious infectious diseases. Set up in collaboration with the Atlanta-based U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the unit is physically separate from other patient areas and is one of only four such facilities in the country.

The Associated Press reported Thursday that the Ebola death toll passed 700 in West Africa as security forces went house-to-house in Sierra Leone’s capital looking for patients and others exposed to the disease.

Read Here:http://www.ajc.com/news/news/breaking-news/emory-healthcare-to-treat-ebola-patient/ngrtm/

REPORT: At least one Ebola 

patient is headed to an 

Atlanta hospital – American 

infected with virus condition 

worsening

A patient with the deadly Ebola virus will arrive at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta for treatment “within the next several days,” according to a statement from the university.

Business Insider,

1 August, 2014

There is no word yet on exactly when the patient will arrive, but it is expected that he or she will be treated in the hospital’s wards that are specifically set up to treat highly infectious diseases.

The “hospital has a specially-built isolation unit to treat patients exposed to certain serious infectious diseases,” Misty Williams wrote in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Set up in collaboration with the Atlanta-based U.S. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the unit is physically separate from other patient areas and is one of only four such facilities in the country.”

Doctors, nurses, and other hospital staff who work on such dangerous cases are “specially trained,” and a statement from Emory indicated that the hospital and its staff “are fully prepared for this type of situation.”

According to Vaughn Sterling of CNN, Medevac will actually be picking up more than one American Ebola patient in Liberia. It is not known whether the Ebola patient headed to Atlanta is one of the Americans with Ebola, both of them, or another patient entirely.

A CBS/Associated Press report from earlier in the day noted that “the U.S. is looking into Medevac options to bring two American aid workers diagnosed with Ebola back to the U.S.,” citing White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest as the source. That approach would be consistent with previous outbreaks, such as SARS, when infected Americans have been brought home so that they can receive treatment in the U.S. healthcare system.

A statement released today by SIM, a Christian mission working with Ebola patients in Liberia, indicated that the condition of healthcare worker Nancy Writebol, an American infected with Ebola, had taken a turn for the worse. Dr. Kent Brantly, an American doctor with Samaritan’s Purse who works with Writebol, is also battling the virus.

Here’s the full statement from Emory:

Emory University Hospital has been informed that there are plans to transfer a patient with Ebola virus infection to its special facility containment unit within the next several days. We do not know at this time when the patient will arrive.

Emory University Hospital has a specially built isolation unit set up in collaboration with the CDC to treat patients who are exposed to certain serious infectious diseases. It is physically separate from other patient areas and has unique equipment and infrastructure that provide an extraordinarily high level of clinical isolation. It is one of only four such facilities in the country.

Emory University Hospital physicians, nurses and staff are highly trained in the specific and unique protocols and procedures necessary to treat and care for this type of patient. For this specially trained staff, these procedures are practiced on a regular basis throughout the year so we are fully prepared for this type of situation.

An Emory University spokesperson declined to provide additional details.

This story is developing.

Ebola death toll rises to 729: 

WHO

.

Yahoo,

1 August, 2014

Geneva (AFP) - The deaths of 57 more people from Ebola in west Africa have pushed the overall fatality toll from the epidemic to 729, the World Health Organization said Thursday.

The 57 deaths were recorded between Thursday and Sunday last week in Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone, the UN health agency said in a statement

It said 122 new cases were detected over those four days, taking the total number of confirmed and likely infected cases from the outbreak so far to 1,323.

WHO said the trend in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone "remains precarious with ongoing... transmission of infection".

Guinea is suffering the worst from the disease, which causes often fatal bleeding and has no vaccine. The country's authorities reported 20 more deaths apparently from Ebola in the last four days of last week, taking its national fatility figure to 339.

Liberia saw 27 more deaths, for a total national death toll of 156.

Sierra Leone reported nine more deaths for a total 233 dead.

Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, reported its first death from Ebola in that period.

WHO said the medical sample taken from the patient who died in Nigeria shortly after arriving by air had still not been analysed by its regional lab because courier companies were refusing to transport it.

The UN agency added that it "does not recommend any travel or trade restrictions" be applied to Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, or Sierra Leone at this time

The WHO's statement was available at:

http://www.who.int/csr/don/2014_07_31_ebola/en/.