Hemorrhagic fever viruses as biological weapons: medical and public health management.

US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health ^ | May 8;287(18):2391-405. | AMA. 2002

[Nachum]

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JAMA. 2002 May 8;287(18):2391-405.

Hemorrhagic fever viruses as biological weapons: medical and public health management.

Borio L¹, Inglesby T, Peters CJ, Schmaljohn AL, Hughes JM, Jahrling PB, Ksiazek T, Johnson KM, Meyerhoff A, O'Toole T, Ascher MS, Bartlett J, Breman JG, Eitzen EM Jr, Hamburg M, Hauer J, Henderson DA, Johnson RT, Kwik G, Layton M, Lillibridge S, Nabel GJ, Osterholm MT, Perl TM, Russell P, Tonat K; Working Group on Civilian Biodefense.

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Abstract

OBJECTIVE:

To develop consensus-based recommendations for measures to be taken by medical and public health professionals if hemorrhagic fever viruses (HFVs) are used as biological weapons against a civilian population.

PARTICIPANTS:

The Working Group on Civilian Biodefense included 26 representatives from academic medical centers, public health, military services, governmental agencies, and other emergency management institutions.

EVIDENCE:

MEDLINE was searched from January 1966 to January 2002. Retrieved references, relevant material published prior to 1966, and additional sources identified by participants were reviewed.

CONSENSUS PROCESS:

Three formal drafts of the statement that synthesized information obtained in the evidence-gathering process were reviewed by the working group. Each draft incorporated comments and judgments of the members. All members approved the final draft.

CONCLUSIONS:

Weapons disseminating a number of HFVs could cause an outbreak of an undifferentiated febrile illness 2 to 21 days later, associated with clinical manifestations that could include rash, hemorrhagic diathesis, and shock. The mode of transmission and clinical course would vary depending on the specific pathogen. Diagnosis may be delayed given clinicians' unfamiliarity with these diseases, heterogeneous clinical presentation within an infected cohort, and lack of widely available diagnostic tests. Initiation of ribavirin therapy in the early phases of illness may be useful in treatment of some of these viruses, although extensive experience is lacking. There are no licensed vaccines to treat the diseases caused by HFVs.

Comment in

• Modes of transmission of hemorrhagic fever. [JAMA. 2002]
• Modes of transmission of hemorrhagic Fever. [JAMA. 2002]

[Nachum]

So... I guess it IS possible for Ebola to be passed as an 'airborne virus' after all...

[Nachum]

The list, Ping

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[Whenifhow]

Thanks for posting this!

[Nachum]

This passed to me by another FReeper. The original source from the link was not suitable for FR posting, but this was the basis for the article it came from.

Thanks to that FReeper for the source.

[Whenifhow]

Glad you were able to get the info!

[familyop]

Related info. Have a good Ebola weekend.

Boxun Description of Ebola in China

Recombinomics Commentary
July 19, 2005

1. EB-SZ type:...Incubation period is 2-4 weeks. Some individual cases have incubation period up to 6 months. Some cases are asymptomatic...co-infections and complications...diathesis from the major blood vessels. In severe cases, blood vessels disintegrate; muscular tissues became fluid-like; patients died of lack of oxygen due to haemorrhage. After the case die, the disintegration symptoms persist...The process continues until the carcass completely disintegrates.... 2. EB-ST type:...Incubation period: 30-120 days...This virus is suspected to be the mutated by-product of Ebola virus and other viruses... 3. EB-HN type:...Transmission is unknown. Incubation is about 30-60 days...After the disintegration of blood vessels, patients experience symptoms related to blood loss. Most of the deceased cases' heavily infected organs were in their lungs. If the blood vessels of the internal organs were infected, it will cause hepatic damage. Deceased case's face and bottom will disintegrate within 2-8 hours afterwards;... 6. EB-SZ77 type: It was found in Shenzhen of South China (adjacent to Hong Kong). This virus could infect birds.

... Other boxun documents indicate details of H5N1 and Ebola infections are considered state secrets,...

Joe Neubarth

Tuesday, November 27, 2012 A CHINESE BIOWEAPON ALMOST GOT OUT OF CONTROL IN 2005.

I am a former Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Warfare Officer in the United States Navy. What I believe we saw was a bio-weapon that was deliberately or accidentally released from a Chinese Bio-Weapons Lab in Sichuan. Hence the attempt to name it Sichuan Sheet,...

What was this biological weapon that I believe the Chinese have perfected by now? I believe it was a form of "Air or proximity transmitted (coughing sneezing) Ebola that could pass from person to person as easily as the common flu. If it was released on purpose, it was a perfect time to do so, because the newspapers in the region were covering the Bird Flu outbreak, and the bio-weapon release story could be lost in the Bird Flu story as the Bird Flu spread out of China...

The Bioweapon was very lethal at the beginning and the Chinese were frantic about getting it contained. Thousands of troops were rushed into Sichuan and other regions that it was detected including the Qinghai Lakes area where H5N1 Bird Flu was also breaking out at the same time. People were ordered to stay in their houses and not come out. Death squads of soldiers were sent from infected village to infected village and were eliminating whole villages and bulldozing the bodies under. Then all of the troops who were involved in the slaughter were killed. There was one report of a whole battalion of troops being marched into a large abandoned coal mine. Once they were all in there, the mine entrance was blown shut and all of those soldiers were left to die.

[Boogieman]

VHFs are a large group of viruses, not just ebola. The abstract doesn’t mention anything about ebola specifically. Note also that this is a paper about how to defend against a theoretical attack, not some description of a plan to weaponize these viruses (though our government has tried to weaponize VHFs, just like most other deadly viruses).

[Whenifhow]

Not exactly what I was looking for, but could be useful info:

Guess who scientifically proved and published that lethal infections in primates can be caused by aerosolized Ebola Zaire? USAMRIID

Who is the United State Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases?
http://www.usamriid.army.mil/aboutpage.cfm

The United State Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, Frederick, Maryland, USA published the following scientific study and paper in 1995:
“Lethal experimental infections of rhesus monkeys by aerosolized Ebola virus.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1997182/pdf/ijexpath00004-0007.pdf

-This study demonstrates aerosol transmission of Ebola virus to non-human primates.

-“We also demonstrated aerosol transmission of Ebola virus at lower temperature and humidity

-”Regardless, we have shown that Ebola virus (Zaire strain) can be transmitted by aerosol in an experimental primate model. In light of the pathogenicity of human filovirus infections, health care personnel at risk of exposure should use precautions to minimize the risk of aerosol exposure

Inference:
the CDC is basing its current recommendations on epidemiologic studies from a different climate and environment, while the US army research shows scientifically and conclusively that aerosolized Ebola Zaire transmission is possible in primates, and is probably more likely to occur in a colder and less humid environment than exists in Africa.

[Smokin' Joe]

Ping…

A link to this thread has been posted on the Ebola Surveillance Thread

[null and void]

The game of Ebola Roulette continues...

*click* spin *click* spin *click* spin…BANG!

Eeeee-bolllll-aaaaaa ping!

Bring Out Your Dead

We’re gonna need

a bigger cart!

Post to me or FReep mail to be on/off the Bring Out Your Dead ping list.

The purpose of the “Bring Out Your Dead” ping list (formerly the “Ebola” ping list) is very early warning of emerging pandemics, as such it has a high false positive rate.

So far the false positive rate is 100%.

At some point we may well have a high mortality pandemic, and likely as not the “Bring Out Your Dead” threads will miss the beginning entirely.

*sigh* Such is life, and death...