I think it's rare if not unheard of to get HIV from handling a dead body? Although that's essentially the proposed mechanism for how it got into the human population in the first place, basically someone killed a chimp to eat it and in the process of butchering it, cut themselves and ended up infected with SIV. I've seen a talk that attributed much of the spread of HIV in Africa to multiple sex partners over a given time period, particularly when first infected. Basically viral load is high when initially infected for a few weeks/months and this is when the disease is most readily passed on to someone else. So guy goes to a whore when working in the city and gets HIV, goes to other whores, goes back to wife in the village, everybody gets infected. It spreads much slower if you have serial sex partners, as is apparently much more common in the West. At least that was the claim of the talk. I'm sure there are other factors as well.

Well it's not as hard to catch, in the sense that somebody with Ebola at some point might be leaking body fluids in a way a person with HIV won't and the virus appears to be a bit more robust, on the other hand somebody with Ebola probably isn't going to be too interested in having sex, when we most readily swap body fluids, for very long after they become symptomatic and able to infect someone else.

A lot of the people being infected are caregivers and those burying the dead. When someone has ebola there is a lot of blood.

If the article is accurate this guy carried the person. Certainly we will have to wait for the full story but it seems odd to me that a hospital would not admit a person "Bleeding all over the place" nor would a person "Pick up and carry back into their home" a person that was bleeding all over the place.

Even more odd would be a person that had been exposed to a person that was all bloody in an area that is known for a high level of Ebola not demanding some level of testing right away. Seems to me that if I'm covered in someones blood I'm a bit concerned about disease. Again will probably have to wait for the full story but either this is a very odd situation or there was no obvious signs of Ebola, like a lot of blood and other bodily fluids.

~Matt

You need to check out more of what is going on in West Africa, they literally have no more room for patients. Liberia apparently only has 200 doctors for 3.5 million people.
http://allafrica.com/...ain/id/00019203.html I gather they ran out of gloves in some hospitals a few weeks back. http://online.wsj.com/...er-gloves-1408142137 They are extremely basic in what they have. Watched a documentary by Doctors without Borders recently on the outbreak and the medical situation in my own house is probably better equipped to handle an ebola outbreak than many hospitals in Liberia.

No surprise they got sent home, it isn't uncommon right now in Liberia. http://www.who.int/...treatment-centre/en/

I get they don't have the same medical system we have, but I really don't care who you are if you are carrying someone that is bleeding all over you with no protection, don't you get checked out afterwards? If you come down with "The flu" after such an experience aren't you pretty insistent on more tests?

What I'm saying is that either this person was not concerned about being bled all over, which I find odd but possible, or the person was not showing "Bodily fluid" type symptoms and the disease was transferred easier then what is being portrayed as possible.

~Matt

And current word was that he leaked all over the sidewalk when he barfed. That might be how they have the numbers for those possibly exposed.

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I'm beginning to think that we are much more fucked than I thought.

You raise a couple good questions.

I can see how I would not be forthcoming at first to make sure I got back here. But once I got to the US and got to the hospital, I'd be shouting, 'help, I got the ebolas.'

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I'm beginning to think that we are much more fucked than I thought.

People assume that the general population of Western Africa has the same educational background regarding transmission as we do. From all accounts Ive read, they are pretty much clueless. That is why this is a full blown epidemic vs a few isolated cases.

I can see how I would not be forthcoming at first to make sure I got back here.

If I'm in an area that has a high concentration of a deadly disease transmitted by blood and someone spews blood all over me...I'm high tailing it to the US consulate screaming like a little girl.

But once I got to the US and got to the hospital, I'd be shouting, 'help, I got the ebolas.'

We are currently flying known infected people over in special planes. One would hope that we treat all our citizens equally...never mind, you're right, I jump on the next airline back. Soon as I hit US soil I high tail to the nearest ER screaming like a little girl.

~Matt

People assume that the general population of Western Africa has the same educational background regarding transmission as we do.

Isn't the person in Texas a US citizen? I guess I could see "Ignorance" as an excuse if you just got off the boat and just got your green card, but if you've been here a while that doesn't really wash. I suppose if a person came from some area and was raised in an area where being exposed to others bodily fluids was "No biggy" they would not react like we do. But they would indeed have to not been in the US for very long in order for this to be the case.

~Matt

Well if you are that worried about ebola, how about worrying about something that is already in a lot of hospitals in the US with a 50% death rate that you are far more likely to catch. CRE (carbapenem-resistant Enterobacter ) http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/...-scarier-than-ebola/

how about worrying about something that is already in a lot of hospitals in the US with a 50% death rate that you are far more likely to catch.

Simple, don't ever go to the hospitals where all these nasty things are :-) You know this is why people who never see their doctor live longer don't you.

~Matt

From what I've read, he is a Liberian citizen who just arrived in the US to visit family.

I'm just surprise that we are letting this tragedy go to waste. Where is the Government.TSA. putting thousands on no fly lists. Why are they not using this as a means to restrict international travel? Come on now. I'm sure there are hundreds of others things the government could make a rash over reaching decision on that won't help the problem but use this to put a program they want into place in the name of public health. If anything I'm disappointed.

Here Matt, This article will totally put your mind at ease. http://www.naturalnews.com/...disinformation.html#

Yeah when I had surgery recently there were some logistics involving getting home since the hospital was a good drive from my home. Long story short I basically need to stay an extra day until my wife could come and get me. I said something to the effect of I don't want to drive up the bill to the insurance company, etc., the doctors said ,"Oh we don't care about that, we just don't want you to get an infection by being in the hospital any longer than necessary."

What a relief, I've just been waiting for something to come along that all that colloidal silver I've got at home is effective against.

It's funny that often the same people who believe there's a grand conspiracy out there and that mainstream medical establishment is "hiding the truth" from them, also believe in hokey cures that lack a shred of evidence for being effective.

,"Oh we don't care about that, we just don't want you to get an infection by being in the hospital any longer than necessary."

To certain degree, despite all the precautions taken, this makes sense. "Nature" tends to dilute, filter, etc concentrations of just about everything at some point. Hospitals tend to concentrate all these things because everyone brings their various diluted diseases to the one place. While I'm not so paranoid as to say I'm not going to the hospital it would make logical sense to me that the concentration of "Nasty bugs" is higher in hospitals then it is in your house and or especially outside. I don't know that to be the case, but it certainly wouldn't surprise me.

That being said I would guess the same would be true of any place with a high concentration of humans that come from many different areas. I suspect if you want to catch a cold you should head to the mall...or your kids daycare.

~Matt

Hey now, that is a highly reputable source of information. They also are warning us that the government is seizing colloidal silver shipments into Sierra Leone, thereby dooming all those people and making them go elsewhere for there quackery.

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I'm beginning to think that we are much more fucked than I thought.

In a recent press conference CDC Director Frieden said that, in theory, a sneeze or cough could spread the virus from someone experiencing Ebola symptoms. 

Officials had previously downplayed this possibility, focusing on direct contact with bodily fluids. His quote: "There are certainly theoretical situations where someone sneezes … and you touch your eyes or mouth or nose," and catch the virus from any transmitted particles, he said. 

“[But] realistically you can say what may be theoretically possible as opposed to what actually happens in the real world,"

http://thehill.com/...about-ebola-response

"There are certainly theoretical situations where someone sneezes … and you touch your eyes or mouth or nose," and catch the virus from any transmitted particles, he said. 

“[But] realistically you can say what may be theoretically possible as opposed to what actually happens in the real world,"

I really freaking hate that. If it's "Theoretically possible" then it's possible. The possibility may be very small but it's possible. Don't tell me "It's theoretically possible" tell me "The possibilities of it happening are....". Saying it's "Theoretically possible" give people the impression that "It's not really possible in the real world", that BS, it IS possible in the real world or IT ISN'T. IF it is and the odds are really tiny tell me the odds are really tiny.

The thing that really needs to be known is what is the half life outside the body as well as ease of infection.

A quick goolge popped this up.

Studies done in Ebola Treatment Units in Africa, CDC spokeswoman Abbigail Tumpey says, show the virus can live on surfaces for a few hours at most.

However in the same article...

In one study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Ebola virus lived on a surface in a perfectly controlled environment for up to six days.

So the Ebolas can last for up to six days outside the body under "Perfect" conditions. Obviously if the Ebolas lands in a raging fire it's not lasting long. This is actually less then what HIV is supposed to be able to last. So from that sense Ebola is less infectious then HIV. HIV is supposed to able to survive in dried blood for a while and in a syringe for weeks. So that leave the ability to infect. As far as I can tell it pretty much takes blood to blood or infected fluid to relatively easily permeated membrains for HIV. Not sure what the case is for Ebola.

Seems Ebola is considerable more effective at infection, but this may just be a case of more fluids available. Again, don't know.

~Matt

Would you please stop with these posts? You are scaring the children!

How perfect is an Ebola-filled pile of vomit left on a sidewalk in Dallas for three days, which is subsequently pressure washed into the local storm water system?

Please don't judge the way our fine city is handling the first ever non-contained US Soil ebola carrier! So what our local hospital sent him home because the nurse failed to communicate his travels to the physician. So what that the carrier's sweaty sheets were left in the same home where members of his family were quarantined. So what that a pile of puke with his ebola germs swimming around was left for days then washed away. I mean seriously, what do you want from us? /pink, I think?

How perfect is an Ebola-filled pile of vomit left on a sidewalk in Dallas for three days

If the temp there was around 98.6 degrees I suspect the Ebolas on the bottom of the pile and protected from UV and light might have survived for a while. I doubt the dudes cleaning it up are in any danger but let's say someone walked by right after the incident and stepped in a bit of it, went upstairs, took the shoe off then rubbed their face...inquiring minds want to know.

~Matt