CDC, Slower than a Virus.

CDC, Slower than a Virus.

By: Anthony J. Gerst

Wow, with such a surprising report issued from General Petreaus about our great progress in Iraq, and of course the political dog and pony show on the hill you could see how other news could fall through the cracks. Not to mention the fact the media is covering half of the U.S. population as they run for president. I could see how the next little bit of news missed the evening broadcast. As we speak, ( figuratively) deep in the heart of the Congo a deadly outbreak of Ebola has shown itself.

I remember going to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) site and being able to find the latest news about deadly disease outbreaks from around the globe. I just went to check on this. Their newest release under ‘outbreak postings’ is for July 27. Bushco’s desire to make all government information more difficult to obtain, could be very deadly to your health. God forbid a deadly pandemic break out in America that kills in hours, with the CDC being hampered by regulatory requirements about posting pertinent time sensitive information. (My assumption ladies and gentlemen, not confirmed fact.)

Thankfully although the informed citizen can obtain news from a variety of sources. Reuters released this story from Geneva on Sept 11. The news of this outbreak came as a courtesy of the World Health Organization (WHO). Occurring in the province of Kasi Occidental, samples from five people have tested positive for Ebola haemorrhagic fever. These samples were confirmed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. In the past four months, 120 people have died and 300 have taken ill. It is believed that several diseases are affecting this remote area at once.

Kasi is east of Kikwit, in 1995 a major Ebola outbreak there killed 215 people. There is no cure for Ebola, the disease acts quickly and is rather horrific. For those who remember the film ‘Outbreak,’ this was the disease upon which the movie was based.

Last Tuesday, WHO activated its Global Outbreak Alert & Response Network. They have called on global health organizations and the CDC to send experts into the field to help determine the extent to which this biological threat has grown. Ebola seems to reside naturally in the remote recesses of the African rain forests and the Western Pacific.

There has been ongoing heavy fighting between rebel forces and the government east of this remote location during the past few weeks. So far there are no reports of the disease showing up there, with any luck this will be contained at the isolated locality. Warnings have been issued to local residents that Ebola, which is transmitted by contact with bodily fluids, is usually passed to caretakers of the sick. The warning stresses that the processing of a deceased body for burial is another means of becoming infected.

WHO stresses the necessity to identify and isolate the Ebola cases from Shigella, the other primary disease running rampant throughout the area. I would suggest contacting WHO, the Red Cross, even the Democratic Republic of Congo for further information. As it would appear, the outbreak will be over before the CDC has posted anything about it.