Category Archives: healthcare

Drug given to American Ebola patients is produced in Kentucky using tobacco plants | Health | Kentucky.com

{the good, bad, and the ugly – the drug is being produced under contract with US Military Labs that had tested nerve weapons and antidotes, as well as the possibilities of weaponizing a variety of diseases, as well as producing antidotes – why given only to two Americans – how dare I even ask that?)

In 2007, Mapp, working under contract for the U.S. Department of Defense and other federal agencies, engaged KBP to develop a process to manufacture a compound designed to be a post-exposure treatment for Ebola virus.

That compound was MB-003 or ZMapp, a cocktail of antibodies that has proven to be the most effective treatment so far in fighting off the Ebola virus.

In a study published last year, scientists at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases reported that 43 percent of infected nonhuman primates recovered after receiving the treatment intravenously 104 to 120 hours after infection — after symptoms developed.

via Drug given to American Ebola patients is produced in Kentucky using tobacco plants | Health | Kentucky.com.

WHO | WHO Director-General assesses the Ebola outbreak with three West African presidents

First, this outbreak is moving faster than our efforts to control it. If the situation continues to deteriorate, the consequences can be catastrophic in terms of lost lives but also severe socioeconomic disruption and a high risk of spread to other countries. As I said before, this meeting must mark a turning point in the outbreak response.

In addition, the outbreak is affecting a large number of doctors, nurses, and other health care workers, one of the most essential resources for containing an outbreak. To date, more than 60 health care workers have lost their lives in helping others. Some international staff are infected. These tragic infections and deaths significantly erode response capacity.

Second, the situation in West Africa is of international concern and must receive urgent priority for decisive action at national and international levels. Experiences in Africa over nearly four decades tell us clearly that, when well managed, an Ebola outbreak can be stopped.

This is not an airborne virus. Transmission requires close contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person, also after death. Apart from this specific situation, the general public is not at high risk of infection by the Ebola virus.

At the same time, it would be extremely unwise for national authorities and the international community to allow an Ebola virus to circulate widely and over a long period of time in human populations.

Constant mutation and adaptation are the survival mechanisms of viruses and other microbes. We must not give this virus opportunities to deliver more surprises.

Third, this is not just a medical or public health problem. It is a social problem. Deep-seated beliefs and cultural practices are a significant cause of further spread and a significant barrier to rapid and effective containment. This social dimension must also be addressed as an integral part of the overall response.

Fourth, in some areas, chains of transmission have moved underground. They are invisible. They are not being reported. Because of the high fatality rate, many people in affected areas associate isolation wards with a sure death sentence, and prefer to care for loved ones in homes or seek assistance from traditional healers.

Such hiding of cases defeats strategies for rapid containment. Moreover, public attitudes can create a security threat to response teams when fear and misunderstanding turn to anger, hostility, or violence.

Finally, despite the absence of a vaccine or curative therapy, Ebola outbreaks can most certainly be contained. Bedrocks of outbreak containment include early detection and isolation of cases, contact tracing and monitoring of contacts, and rigorous procedures for infection control.

Moreover, we do have some evidence that early detection of cases and early implementation of supportive therapy increases the chances of survival. This is another message that needs to be communicated to the public.

via WHO | WHO Director-General assesses the Ebola outbreak with three West African presidents.

My thalidomide family: Every time I went home I was a stranger | Lifeandstyle | The Guardian

Why does it take so long for new drugs to get approved? Thalidomide from the late 1950s and early 1960s and its unexpected effects is the best reason and reason not to give up regulations!

‘I can’t imagine what my dad thought or felt when a grim-faced doctor led him to a delivery room an hour after my birth,” says Louise Medus. “All I know is that he almost fainted with shock when I was fully revealed and blurted out: ‘Surely you’re not going to allow a child in this state to live.’”

Louise was born at Chase Farm Hospital in Enfield, Hertfordshire, on 23 June 1962 to David and Vicki Mason. Her mother had been prescribed thalidomide to prevent morning sickness.

“Like the other parents of thalidomide babies, I’m sure they were expecting a fully formed baby and some of us didn’t have arms, some of us didn’t have legs, some of us didn’t have arms or legs. Some of us had facial disfigurements and some were so deformed that they couldn’t survive.”

via My thalidomide family: Every time I went home I was a stranger | Lifeandstyle | The Guardian.

Threat from drug-resistant malaria is ‘immense’ | Asia | DW.DE | 31.07.2014

The study, carried out by the Mahidol-Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit, concluded that the strand of the disease that is resistant to the world’s most effective antimalarial drug – artemisinin – is now firmly established in border regions in four Southeast Asian countries. The scientists analyzed blood samples from over 1,200 malaria patients in 10 countries across Asia and Africa and found that Plasmodium falciparum, which is the most deadly form of the malaria-causing parasite and resistant to the treatment drug, is now common in parts of Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos.

via Threat from drug-resistant malaria is ‘immense’ | Asia | DW.DE | 31.07.2014.

Promising Ebola Drugs Stuck in Lab Limbo as Outbreak Rages in Africa

{Although the writer is well respected using the term promising feeds doubts about regulations designed to keep people safe and researchers accountable. This is not just red tape for the sake of red tape. Years ago, a drug with great promise was released and “oops” babies with deformed arms and legs were being born. Just a few years ago, a widely prescribed drug was found to “oops” increase the likelihood of strokes and was withdrawn. Research at U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases at Fort Detrick, Maryland is done to protect members of the military from disease in areas of the world where they may be asked to serve. If they had }

Yet, some experimental therapies and vaccines show promise. Some show excellent efficacy when given to nonhuman primates deliberately infected with the virus.

Of the experimental vaccines, most work only to protect against infection. But one—designed by scientists from the Public Health Agency of Canada in conjunction with the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases at Fort Detrick, Maryland—protected half of the animals injected with lethal amounts of Ebola virus when administered 30 minutes post exposure.

via Promising Ebola Drugs Stuck in Lab Limbo as Outbreak Rages in Africa.

Emory Healthcare to treat Ebola patient | www.ajc.com

Agence France-Presse interviewed Dr. Peter Piot, a discoverer of the virus and head of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, who said there was little risk of pandemic.

“Spreading in the population here, I’m not that worried about it,” he told AFP.

“I wouldn’t be worried to sit next to someone with Ebola virus on the Tube as long as they don’t vomit on you or something,” he said, referring to London’s underground train system. “This is an infection that requires very close contact.” (if this is as true, as we are led to believe, then how did well trained and outfitted people contract the disease – including top doctor who had treated 100 patients – all knowing they had to take extreme precautions)

via Emory Healthcare to treat Ebola patient | www.ajc.com.

WHO, West African countries launching emergency plan to combat Ebola | News | DW.DE | 31.07.2014

Finally getting really serious (after key doctor died, two Americans died and one still fighting for life)

The response identifies the need for “several hundred more personnel” to be deployed to affected regions in order to ease the strain on medical facilities, the WHO said, appealing to donor countries for clinical doctors and nurses, epidemiologists and logisticians.

It aims to stop the transmission of Ebola by boosting disease surveillance, particularly in border areas, protecting health workers from infection and doing a better job of informing communities about the virus.

“The plan sets out new needs to respond to the outbreak across the countries and bring up the level of preparedness in neighboring countries,” said WHO spokesman Paul Garwood. “They need better information and infection-control measures.”

Travel warning (Everyone in area had been resisting travel warnings to not harm income from tourists)

The severity of the epidemic prompted the US government on Thursday to issue travel warnings to Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Tom Frieden said the outbreak “represents a potential risk to travelers.”

The CDC is also sending 50 extra specials to affected areas, he added.

Sierra Leone declared a state of emergency Thursday and called on troops to quarantine Ebola victims, joining neighbor Liberia in implementing strict government controls.

via WHO, West African countries launching emergency plan to combat Ebola | News | DW.DE | 31.07.2014.

NIH to launch early Ebola vaccine trial in September

Promising but here’s the catch:If someone has full-blown Ebola hemorrhagic virus, there is no drug on the planet that is going to protect them. But in the monkey model, we do have drugs where, if you have an early stage of infection and an early stage of illness, some of them are pretty successful.”

via NIH to launch early Ebola vaccine trial in September.

US Peace Corps Pulling Volunteers Out of Ebola Epidemic Areas – With What Precautions?

Ebola is spread by people who have it and showing symptoms coming in contact with people as they travel, in hospital, at work, or at home.

People leaving an infected area should be screened before leaving and isolated, perhaps, when they arrive at new destination.

LA Times reports: The Peace Corps is removing more than 300 of its volunteers from Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea as an Ebola outbreak that has left hundreds dead continues to worsen in West Africa.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Peace Corps said it is temporarily removing volunteers from the affected countries, and did not offer any comment on a possible return date.

The news came just days after two American charity workers contracted the disease in Monrovia, the Liberian capital. Patrick Sawyer, a 40-year-old consultant with the Liberian government, was also revealed to be the first American to die of the disease, relatives said Tuesday.

“The Peace Corps has enjoyed long partnerships with the government and people of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, and is committed to continuing volunteers’ work there,” the statement read. “A determination on when volunteers can return will be made at a later date.”

The Peace Corps is removing more than 300 of its volunteers from Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea as an Ebola outbreak that has left hundreds dead continues to worsen in West Africa.

Ebola Outbreak: NC Missionaries Evacuating 60 People

Will this be how ebola is imported to the US?

Will these people be screened before getting on a flight home?

Will they isolated for 21 days when they get home?

North Carolina groups, SIM in Charlotte and Samaritan’s Purse in Boone, announced Tuesday they are bringing some of their missionaries home because of the growing Ebola outbreak in West Africa. SIM is similar to Samaritan’s Purse, it’s a Christian organization that sends missionaries across the world. SIM USA President Bruce Johnson said around 60 people, mostly nonessential personnel like children and spouses, will return to the U.S.

via Ebola Outbreak: NC Missionaries Evacuating 60 People.