Ok, so the CDC has confirmed..and other things!

[Michael J. Motal]

Vampire Junction (vampires at freenet.ufl.edu) wrote:
: On Sun, 14 May 1995, chatski carl wrote:

: As far as a natural host, Richard Preston had a theory that the natural 
: "host" for Ebola was some cave, since one of the index cases had cut 
: himself in said cave and very soon after had gotten sick.  Maybe it's 

Kitum Cave on Mount Elgar on the Kenya/Uganda border is associated with 
the Marburg virus, NOT Ebola.  Marburg is a member of the filoviruses and 
closely related to Ebola, but not quite as lethal.  It name comes from 
the town in Germany where it was first noted. It has also been associated 
with the bats in the cotton gin, again NOT Ebola.
 
As far as reporters going into the area, most transmissions of the virus 
are from direct contact with the infected patient.  From what I've read, 
the body fluids of the infected person must come in contact with 
vulnerable tissues of the uninfected person for there to be a significant 
risk.  In other words, aspirated water droplets from a coughing/vomiting 
victim entering the lungs, mucous membranes, or eyes of an uninfected 
person. Or direct body fluid contact to an uninfected person.  A reporter 
who does not enter a treatment ward, or does not come into direct contact 
with a symptomatic patient, would have a low risk of contracting the virus.
 
The quarantine is necessary because in developing countries, many people 
cannot afford, or have no access, to medical care and are instead treated 
by their families.  This exposes the family members directly to the virus 
and enhances the risk of transmission from the individual to other 
members of the family, to members of the extended family (aunts, uncles, 
cousins, etc.) and then to people outside of the family. In most 
developed countries, medical treatment is sought in a hospital where, 
hopefully, isolation procedures would limit the exposure only to the 
necessary caregivers.  And in the midst of the HIV epidemic, protection 
against contact with a patient's bodily fluids is standard and would 
further lessen the likelihood of transmission to the caregivers.

-Michael
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