Well, it's blown out of proportion for sure but it's certainly news. Ebola is a real problem in West Africa but not so much in the US. Even if he coughed up all over the place people are unlikely to get sick - the virus is mostly contagious after you get really sick. As a doctor he knows this and the symptoms and that's why he felt ok going out.
Do you have an source to back that claim that it is only contagious after the patient shows symptoms? This doesn't seem right based on the science I do know. You technically have the virus, even if the symptoms are late, and so you can still spread them.
I agree Ebola isn't dangerous, but if people act really lax about it, we are only making way for it to spread. The precautions we can take are powerful enough, and simple enough, to stop the spread quite efficiently. But if we don't do preventive care, it can spread easily.
Pretty much any actual source on Ebola will back that up.
The disease increases its viral load in the patient as they get sicker - in the very early stages it is low and contained to internal organs. People who contract ebola do so because they're in close contact with people who are dying from ebola (at which time their viral load is much higher and their fluids, etc, are everywhere). Most importantly, it's very unlikely to get ebola unless you're in very close contact with a patient in the advanced stages of the disease. The reason it spreads so fast in rural african villages is because people take care of their dying family, not because random people are brushing up against sweat from a largely asymptomatic ebola victim who happened to be in the vicinity hours ago
Here's an article that's entirely rational about the extremely limited risk in the US:
I get most of my info from a friend who has worked for MSF over there for the past six months or so. She's not very happy about the new quarantine rules!
Empire_of_the_mind ago
Why is this in Conspiracy? /news or /newyork etc.
lastresort09 ago
Well at least it serves as evidence that we should be taking precaution, rather than tag it as "fear mongering" as many conspiracies have claimed.
Empire_of_the_mind ago
Well, it's blown out of proportion for sure but it's certainly news. Ebola is a real problem in West Africa but not so much in the US. Even if he coughed up all over the place people are unlikely to get sick - the virus is mostly contagious after you get really sick. As a doctor he knows this and the symptoms and that's why he felt ok going out.
lastresort09 ago
Do you have an source to back that claim that it is only contagious after the patient shows symptoms? This doesn't seem right based on the science I do know. You technically have the virus, even if the symptoms are late, and so you can still spread them.
I agree Ebola isn't dangerous, but if people act really lax about it, we are only making way for it to spread. The precautions we can take are powerful enough, and simple enough, to stop the spread quite efficiently. But if we don't do preventive care, it can spread easily.
Empire_of_the_mind ago
Pretty much any actual source on Ebola will back that up.
The disease increases its viral load in the patient as they get sicker - in the very early stages it is low and contained to internal organs. People who contract ebola do so because they're in close contact with people who are dying from ebola (at which time their viral load is much higher and their fluids, etc, are everywhere). Most importantly, it's very unlikely to get ebola unless you're in very close contact with a patient in the advanced stages of the disease. The reason it spreads so fast in rural african villages is because people take care of their dying family, not because random people are brushing up against sweat from a largely asymptomatic ebola victim who happened to be in the vicinity hours ago
Here's an article that's entirely rational about the extremely limited risk in the US:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/how-the-microscopic-ebola-virus-kills-thousands/2014/10/18/6e21bdec-561b-11e4-809b-8cc0a295c773_story.html
lastresort09 ago
There is some contradictory information floating around, but I am leaning towards supporting your side on this.
And contradicting informations:
Empire_of_the_mind ago
I get most of my info from a friend who has worked for MSF over there for the past six months or so. She's not very happy about the new quarantine rules!