With a mortality rate as high as 90%, the Ebola virus, formerly known as hemorrhagic fever, is a unbelievably frightening bug.
As the virus spreads through the body, it damages the immune system and organs. Ultimately, it causes levels of blood-clotting cells to drop. This leads to severe, fevers and uncontrollable bleeding, both internally and externally, before victims finally succumb to merciful death.
Ebola spreads to people by contact with the skin or bodily fluids of an infected animal, like a monkey, chimp, or fruit bat. Then it moves from person to person the same way. Those who care for a sick person or bury someone who has died from the disease often will die from the illness themselves.
In the beginning, Ebola feels like the flu or many other common illnesses, but true symptoms begin to show up 2 to 21 days after a brief incubation period and include:
- High fever
- Headache
- Joint and muscle aches
- Sore throat
- Weakness
- Stomach pain
- Lack of appetite
As the disease progresses, it causes bleeding inside the body, as well as from every orifice of the body including the eyes, ears, genitals and nose. Some people will vomit or cough up blood, have bloody diarrhea, and get a rash that looks like blood blisters.
Until recently, it was thought that one couldn’t get Ebola from air, water, or food, or that a person who has Ebola but has no symptoms wouldn’t be able to spread the disease, either. But the recent devastating outbreak that has been in the news in recent weeks is giving doctors and researchers a better understanding of how the virus may be evolving or changing patterns.
This will hopefully lead to medical breakthroughs in the treatment and prevent of the illness which currently has no known cure for humans, although that may be changing. Unfortunately, it doesn’t do a whole lot for those who are already infected with the virus. As it stands, more than 2000 people have become infected with the number of dead reaching upwards of 80% of that number… the largest death toll from the disease that we have recorded thus far.
Are we at risk in the US? Well, although movies and books describe major outbreaks of Ebola-like disease in the U.S., luckily they are just fiction.
So far serious Ebola cases have only shown up in Central and West Africa and the CDC says there’s no significant risk of Ebola in the United States. After two American doctors were brought back to the States for lifesaving treatment, the CDC also assured all that strong safety measures are in place to safeguard the general population from those people who have Ebola and are brought to the U.S. for treatment.
However, Ebola can spread from country to country when people travel so it is possible for it to reach the U.S. if an infected person travels here, but there are ways to prevent people from coming to U.S. airports with the disease. Airline crews, particularly close to the affected regions, are trained to spot the symptoms of Ebola in passengers flying from places where the virus is found and crews are told to quarantine anyone who looks infected.
So while there is little threat to us over here in the States from the horrifying Ebola virus, we are far from safe, as the health hazards posed by Bird Flu, Swine Flu or H1N1, methicillin-resistant staphylococcus infections or MRSA have been all over the news a lately.
The potential for the spread of infectious diseases has never been higher. There have been verified cases of outbreaks of these bio hazards, which can be deadly and are particularly dangerous to anyone with a weakened immune system.Precautions must be taken to ensure the safety of those you love when dealing with these microbes.
Experts recommend that anytime your home or property has been exposed to potentially life threatening pathogens, that you contact professional biohazardous waste clean up specialists, like those at Advanced Bio Treatment, who are certified and properly trained in elimination and correct disposal of these dangerous bugs as well as other medical waste, like blood, urine and feces.
When it comes to the ones you love and their safety, you can’t afford to try deal with something as potentially serious as a infectious disease outbreak on your own.
Advanced Bio Treatment will research your particular problem and give you a cleanup and sanitation plan tailored to your situation and are well trained, OSHA compliant, meet all EPA guidelines for disposal of infectious material, and also use only the highest quality, medical grade cleaners to ensure that the job is done correctly.
So whether you need a Staph infection cleanup, C-DIFF cleanup, or any other infectious disease cleanup, the sanitation and decontamination technicians here at ABT have the cleanup skills protect you and yours. 800-295-1684
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