Potentially New Ebola Case in Durham, NC? Should we be alarmed?

2014-11-02T22:16:38-05:00

A recent article was in New Scientist with the title Cutting Off the Ebola Zone and yet tonight we receive news of a patient from Liberia at Duke University Hospital in Durham NC, just 35-40 miles from where I live.

What's more is the Durham VA Hospital is right across the road. The patient is running a fever and so how do we know that there hasn't been a lot of contact with that person. I have an article on this below.

http://www.wnct.com/story/27188479/nc-dhhs-monitoring-testing-patient-at-duke-for-ebola

I am sure that panic is yet a concern but if what we are being told the truth, then there should be no problem, right? Please no Politically Correct stuff. Just do you think we should be extra careful?

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 2 at 2014 10:16 PM

2014-11-02T22:16:10-05:00

No, not alarmed, but take precautions and watch our 6 and others around us. As the Boy Scouts says: Be Prepared.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 2 at 2014 10:17 PM

2014-11-02T22:17:58-05:00

I am currently more concerned with dying in a vehicle accident, or something along those lines.

Response by CW5 Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 2 at 2014 10:31 PM

2014-11-02T22:31:03-05:00

I don't think so, SSgt Private RallyPoint Member. The chances of the disease being transmitted to you, assuming the guy has Ebola, are still very small.

Response by MSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 2 at 2014 10:38 PM

2014-11-02T22:38:48-05:00

Although POTUS assured Americans the Ebola would be very unlikely to enter our borders. He is now singing a different tune. So I am not shocked but I do believe a travel ban could help keep it from our borders.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/obama-more-ebola-cases-possible-in-the-u-s/

Response by MSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 2 at 2014 10:44 PM

2014-11-02T22:44:03-05:00

Hey you might be safe on this side of the country. I'm keeping my fingers crossed anyway.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 2 at 2014 10:56 PM

2014-11-02T22:56:50-05:00

Not really. We Americans watch too much TV. If it's not sensational, it's not news.

Response by LCpl Steve Wininger made Nov 2 at 2014 10:57 PM

2014-11-02T22:57:42-05:00

Much depends on the test results. If the person tests positive it would definitely be cause for concern since the person did not work directly with Ebola victims.

Another area that concerns me is the government trying to down play this so much. I know the media gets in a frenzy over these things, however, this round of Ebola has taken more lives than all the other ebola outbreaks since its discovery in the mi 70's.

Thanks for posting, I will definitely be watching this story.

Response by LTC Jason Strickland made Nov 2 at 2014 11:01 PM

2014-11-02T23:01:43-05:00

Just remember, more people have been married to Kim Kardashian than have died from Ebola here in the U.S. Just sayin'...

Response by SP5 Michael Rathbun made Nov 2 at 2014 11:19 PM

2014-11-02T23:19:01-05:00

It is interesting to note the parallels with the human immune system over-reacting to a threat or incorrectly evaluating a threat, and attacking the very structure it is supposed to defend.

Such is the case here, in my not even slightly humble opinion.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 3 at 2014 12:11 AM

2014-11-03T00:11:06-05:00

I would argue that the common flu is a bigger problem than Ebola

http://pediatrics.about.com/od/kidsandtheflu/a/deaths-from-flu.htm

Do you know how many kids die from the flu each year?

Deaths from flu are a lot more common than people think. Thousands of adults and hundreds of kids die each year from the flu, which is a good reason to get a yearly flu vaccine.

Response by CPT Jeremy Smith made Nov 3 at 2014 1:07 AM

2014-11-03T01:07:32-05:00

It depends on what you mean by alarmed. There is absolutely no reason to panic. a healthy level of concern, and situational awareness yes but panic? No. Here are the facts, Ebola is not airborne by the definitions used for disease transmission, that means that the virus does not travel through the air unless being transferred by bodily fluids which can not travel very far from the body. The Virus does not absorb through the skin only through openings such as the eyes, nose, mouth. So someone would have to have it who was near you and would have to sneeze almost right on you or you touch their bodily fluids and then put it in you eyes nose or mouth. Unlike African countries that currently are experiencing this virus at a terrifyingly rapid progress there is a lot better hygiene practices among the general population here as well as advanced medical treatment. Hygiene alone can greatly reduce the transmission. And to those who fear the virus will mutate and become airborne, while this is hypothetically possible there are no cases of an disease ever changing transmission methods, ever. So there is very little to be concerned about in the large picture, there may be a few more isolated cases, but it is highly highly unlikely it will spread rapidly through our country the way it has in Africa. Be aware, was your hands like you would already, maybe a little more if traveling on international flights that may have a very unlikely chance of being exposed and carry on with your life.

Response by SSgt Brycen Shumway made Nov 3 at 2014 3:47 AM

2014-11-03T03:47:50-05:00

Flu Season is setting in.

Guess what Ebola looks like until diagnosed?

Response by SSG(P) Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 3 at 2014 1:11 PM

2014-11-03T13:11:14-05:00

Actually Sir you dying from your pajamas catching on fire is 4x more likely then you dying from ebola.