Why do they care what his/her previous contacts were, he/she was immediately isolated after showing symptoms...
Or could it be that it isn’t really known yet at what point one is contagious... My guess is you get gradually more contagious as the virus replicates... Symptoms or not...
Hmmm...
Re: “My guess is you get gradually more contagious as the virus replicates...”
Makes sense.
The first victim, who died, spent several days with family and friends.
As far as we know, none of his “unprotected” contacts have become infected.
A shocking number of victims in Africa have been health care workers.
I’m beginning to think that, in its late stages, Ebola can go airborne.
Even if a health care worker somehow has contact with bodily fluids, she would still need some kind of break in her skin to let the virus in.
Hmmmm....... yes
A physician gave Rush and us the lesson yesterday. The fact a person is infected but shows no symptoms does not preclude passing on the virus. There are apparently no studies that shed light on shedding the virus before symptoms.
As I understood the man, the intensity of the virus may be less before symptoms and the virus in the shed fluids may be less but still there. To me that means the ability to shed (his language) is not controlled by an on/off switch but rather perhaps a gain control that achieves full volume coincidently with symptoms
You are contagious to a certain degree as soon as the virus enters your system, symptoms do not have to exist! When fluids start leaking all over the place the risk is certainly increased, but do you want to wait that long to start being careful?
One such statement was Freidan's "she has a low-level infection." What in the heck is that? Is that like "only a little bit pregnant?
Another is the oft used "wash your hands" and "can't get that but through DIRECT contact with bodily whatever," implying you had to get right up on them and rub on'em somehow.
Sanjay Gupta had Freidan in an interview and Freidan was going through the spiel and then Gupta says, "and if they sneeze on you?" Turns out there was another part to the "wash your hands" and "bodily fluid contact" - it involves not getting anywhere near the sneeze/cough zone.
http://www.discovery.com/tv-shows/mythbusters/videos/slow-motion-sneezes.htm
I'm confident that CDC has the best medical scientists one can have. I am not confident, however, that the overall approach the CDC (with its insistence in keeping the West Africa travel line open) is taking is solely a medical decision.
I agree...Scientists made the stats based on what they assume....and you know what they say about “assume”...
Or could it be that it isn’t really known yet at what point one is contagious... My guess is you get gradually more contagious as the virus replicates... Symptoms or not...
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Rush had a good call from a doctor yesterday ..... briefly a couple of his statements - much longer, detailed conversation at the link:
CALLER: According to the guidelines on the CDC, they state that 21 days is the incubation period, so to speak, and before the viral entity in your body gets large enough before it becomes contagious.
Studies that show that a viremia can be spread prior to 21 days have not been vigorously pursued. Meaning, there’s not enough data out there to disprove the fact that it can be spread prior to you getting symptoms.
RUSH: Wait a minute. If there had been no studies, Doctor, why are they telling everybody, “Don’t worry! If you don’t see anybody with any symptoms, you can’t get it.” On what basis are they promising that.
CALLER: Because from a statistical point of view, that’s probably true 99% of the time, for the majority of the time. But the virus is replicating in the body prior to it getting to a high enough titer where they can get sick. But prior to the symptoms occurring, the virus can still be spread or shed from the body that has been infected prior to actually having symptoms. This is what people need to know. We cannot be allowing people to come into America even if they’re asymptomatic, because the virus can be shed prior to symptoms. Prior to a level of the virus actually hurting the body, the body can be shed in the same manner prior to sickness. It may be statistically low, but it can happen.
http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2014/10/14/a_doctor_on_the_virology_of_ebola
I think it relates to the difference between causal contacts and intimate ones. Since the virus spreads through bodily fluids, those the closest to the patient are the most potentially at risk.
This study was very recent. Temperature spikes are not always present apparently:
“Yet the largest study of the current outbreak found that in nearly 13% of “confirmed and probable” cases in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and elsewhere, those infected did not have fevers.”
http://touch.latimes.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-81653963/
It's encouraging that of all the people that were exposed to Duncan prior to his being hospitalized, including those in close proximity on airplanes, in airports, and on the streets of Dallas, none has gotten the disease. Zero. Which to me lends credence to the idea that the contagious period really commences with onset of symptoms. Thank god.