BREAKING: FLIGHT BEING HELD IN SEA-TAC FOR POSSIBE SMALLPOX!

Fox News

[Patriot]

Developing......

[Nita Nupress]

How would they be able to determine whether or not somebody on the plane had smallpox? There are no visible symptoms in the early stages.

This information on diagnostic procedures for smallpox may help. I'm not sure how they're going to handle this from a public health standpoint because it'll be like walking a tightrope: They won't want to panic everyone, but they can't afford not to take it seriously, either. It'll be interesting to watch.

http://www.emedicine.com/emerg/topic885.htm

Lab Studies:

• Perform a viral swab of the pharynx on patients in whom smallpox is suggested or swab a freshly opened pustule, if available. Otherwise, use a scalpel to open a lesion and obtain a culture.

• Isolation of the variola virus should be undertaken only in a laboratory with Biosafety Level 4 (BSL-4) capabilities. The only laboratories in the United States with these capabilities at this time are at the CDC in Atlanta, GA, and the US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) in Ft Detrick, MD.

• Send them in a Vacutainer tube with the rubber stopper taped. Double seal it and inform the receiving lab and courier of the potential biohazard. Prior to collection of samples or shipment, CDC or USAMRIID should be consulted directly, as should local public health authorities. In addition to individual state laws concerning highly infectious agents, specific federal laws apply to the shipping of such pathogens across state lines.

• Once in a lab, viral cultures, polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and/or enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent assay may be undertaken.

• The prior criterion standard was the chorioallantoic egg membrane culture.

Imaging Studies:

• No imaging studies assist in making the diagnosis of variola infection.

Other Tests:

• PCR may be used to make definitive laboratory diagnosis.

Procedures:

• Include a lumbar puncture in the workup of a hemorrhagic variola to exclude meningococcemia.

[Ridin' Shotgun]

'They had a phone in that someone on the plane had smallpox'.

Goes to prove one thing. Terrorists don't need hijacked planes to terrorize America anymore. Just a phone. Think I read somewhere that the incubation period for small pox is anywhere from 7 to 17 days. So that equals 17 days of terror for the passengers, their families and by proxy, the whole country. And if it turns out to be the real deal, people will be begging Ashcroft to trash whatever rights we might still have (maybe even if it doesn't).

[Mia T]

That's correct. Does anyone know if blood will test positive during the incubation period? If not, those passenger will have to be quarantined for the entire quarantine period.

[SAMWolf]

Portland Mayor, Vera Katz, has just announced that Doctors from Portland
will NOT be allowed to examine Non-citizens for smallpox infection.

Non-citizens cannot be examined for mere suspicion of infection. < /sarcasm>

[AAABEST]

I think it's pretty sad and cowardly of us to overreact this way. We can't be sending up fighters or grounding airplanes every time someone phones in a anonymous threat or runs to the rest room.

Pretty soon the terrorists won't have to use jets and bombs. They'll just have to make prank phone calls to disrupt our society.

[Dark Wing]

ping

[rwfromkansas]

No kidding..the fact the plane was going to NJ though makes me wonder....after all, that is where teh terrorists ahve been. I still think there is only about a 10% chance of this turning to be real, but I am goig to keep up with the news in any case.

[Defiant]

I'd start by testing anyone named "Abdul".

[freeasinbeer]

Lets hope that it is a hoax. As unlikely as a smallpox outbreak is (well, I don't think it is unlikely, but that may be slightly tin-foilish), one would think that there would be more than one small-pox 'mule' sent. As someone else noted, the enclosed cabin of an airplane is the perfect place for transmission.

Hope this is false!

[Eternal_Bear]

I think the terrorists would just slip smallpox across our southern border. Hardly anything gets stopped there.

[tallhappy]

Flight from Taiwan, eh? Didn't they just elect a govt that is leaning even further from reconciliation with the mainland?

I thought along similar lines as well. I thought it could be some ChiCom trying to make trouble.

But, back in 1995 al Qaeda planned out a scheme to blow up a number of airliners on the same day, all en route from Taipei, Hong Kong, Osaka, Singapore, Manilla and the like. Early on after 911 there was a report in the Taiwan media that they had detained terrorist related persons trying to enter Taiwan.

The al Qaeda is mobile and do transit that part of the world as well.

[rwfromkansas]

What rights have been trashed?

[VA Advogado]

This has to be bogus. Its highly unlikely they could confirm smallpox without detailed testing. Either a hoax or they got good hard evidence. I suspect its the former.

[Nita Nupress]

Smallpox is some scary sh!t..

It doesn't have to be. I think a lot of people tend to overreact for two reasons: 1) the fear of the "unknown," and 2) they take their cue from the media. If this is really smallpox, the media will be all over it and create a mass panic. Don't listen to them.

[Lockbox]

Guess the Vast Right Wing had a round trip ticket and was returning from overseas with their latest.....

[da_toolman]

Your right, let's just all go home and pretend like 9/11 never happened...

[Endeavor]

For several reasons - one main one being that smallpox can be spead through the air so you don't want people out and about even in a "contained" area. Also, they really don't know what threat, if any, they are facing and I would imagine they are not going to widen the perimeter without knowing what they are dealing with.

[VA Advogado]

Looks like a prank, hope it is.

Flower the children! It was someone calling to check if they served HAM HOCKS on that flight.

[Zorobabel]

When does smallpox become infectious? Before or after the actual pox begin to form on the skin? Isn't a person pretty much dog sick when they start to come down with it?

[Poohbah]

Rule One: ALWAYS HONOR THE THREAT.