The Zika Virus

[Surfcrest]

http://globalnews.ca/news/601119/alberta-tourist-diagnosed-with-rare-zika-virus-after-trip-to-thailand/

There is building hysteria happening over here in North America with respect to the Zika Virus, a virus that originates and is transmitted initially by mosquito bite. Because this is a virus, it has the ability to mutate in an infected human and is already transmittable from human to human.

There is no vaccine for the Zika Virus and so travelers in the affected countries, including Thailand, Central and South America are to avoid mosquito infected areas to avoid infection.

Surfcrest

[egel]

Ah the latest medical hysteria. Remember SARS, Asian flu., etc , the list is endless.
Anyone know anybody personally who died from them?
Thought not....
Next topic please!

[Oliver]

Nevertheless, advice concerning protection against mosquito bites is always worth following; dengue fever, for example, is apparently rife in Thailand at the moment. And it can be fatal.

[dab69]

A serious disease.

If you were pregnant and infected your baby could turn out like MFAS.

=))

[Up2U]

Nevertheless, advice concerning protection against mosquito bites is always worth following; dengue fever, for example, is apparently rife in Thailand at the moment. And it can be fatal.
I have had friends who have contracted dengue fever here in Pattaya and a Thai soap opera star recently died from it.

https://asiancorrespondent.com/2016/01/ ... gue-fever/ (https://asiancorrespondent.com/2016/01/popular-thai-actor-por-thridsadee-37-dies-of-dengue-fever/)

http://www.khaosodenglish.com/detail.ph ... 6&section= (http://www.khaosodenglish.com/detail.php?newsid=1453979940&typecate=06&section=)

[fountainhall]

Ah the latest medical hysteria. Remember SARS, Asian flu., etc , the list is endless.
Anyone know anybody personally who died from them?
Thought not....
Next topic please!
That's a cheap jibe and untrue. SARS killed 775 people around the world and affected more than 8,000. I knew one who died in Hong Kong! How about ebola, another on your endless list? How about the families of the 11,316 who died in the latest outbreak, including the medical professionals?

What makes the comment outrageous is that the zika virus attacks the brains of unborn babies. Already more than 4,000 have been born with microcephaly and will require medical and other support for their entire lives. Let's remember, too, that the zika virus has earlier been found in South East Asia.

[Surfcrest]

I posted this story just to give you folks not following the news too closely, some of the excitement coming out of the WHO about the Zika virus today just in case you are flying home or crossing and borders. This is a disease that began in the Zika forest of Uganda and that has been spreading eastward through the tropics to the point of jumping from the South Pacific to South America and upwards. It has already passed through Thailand and is probably still present to some degree. It has hit Brazil very hard on the eve of the 2016 summer Olympics.

The disease is transmitted by mosquito and may or may not exhibit symptoms similar to dengue fever. They are currently working on a vaccine for the virus, but do not currently have one...nor is there a cure. Pregnant woman are the most at risk. The disease is a virus and is able to mutate. It is of the family of viruses that is spread through blood or bodily fluids and so, puts us on the low risk side...with the exception of mosquito transmission.

This is something you want to be aware of when you are traveling and so check ahead depending on where you are coming or going to, for possible health screening.

Surfcrest

[cdnmatt]

I've noticed a bit of an uptick in mosquitos lately, I'm assuming due to the colder weather and couple good rain storms we had.

Can't say I'm overly worried about Zika though. Dengue fever on the other hand is always in the back of my mind, as that one is quite prevalent here, and not something I want to get.

[Manforallseasons]

"If you were pregnant and infected your baby could turn out like MFAS."(quote)dab69



I guess this was an attempt at humor..........This is a pic of a baby born from a mother infected with Zika! How about a child with Polio, also funny?

[Smiles]

"If you were pregnant and infected your baby could turn out like MFAS."(/quote)

guess this was an attempt at humor..........This is a pic of a baby born from a mother infected with Zika! How about a child with Polio, also funny?
Noted that baby MFAS has already flattened his very first 'hong nam' door. More to come, undoubtedly.

[Dalewood]

1, My Heavens, these jokes are disgusting.

2. All I have read so far says that only certain mosquitoes can transmit the disease; direct human to human transmission is impossible.

[lego]

Really, some people... You do realize what often happens to babies who are born disfigured in Thailand, especially to poor and uneducated parents? If that virus spreads here, it will be a very sad affair.

[Brad the Impala]

There are so many things in life to worry about. Is it terribly selfish to have decided that this is not going to be high up the list of my concerns, given that it is most dangerous to babies, which I am most unlikely to create, and I normally do my best to avoid at all costs babies in general.

[Smiles]

Giggle [or cry, or pray, or donate] at what you want to guys. I like my cuppa yukyuk tea cosmic, and black.

[thaiguest]

Ah the latest medical hysteria. Remember SARS, Asian flu., etc , the list is endless.
Anyone know anybody personally who died from them?
Thought not....
Next topic please!

The day may not be far off when we'll all know somebody personally who has died from a viral infection. Doctors and scientists have been mixing and matching the same set of antibiotics for 30 years in a losing race against mutating viruses.
If new options are not found soon we will be all be wiped out by a virus or viruses before a meteor or a Yellowstone blow-out gets us.

[Nirish guy]

"soon we will be all be wiped out by a virus or viruses"

Have you ever thought of taking a job writing for the Daily Mail in the UK here perhaps, it seems you'd fit right in with their usual style of editorial content.

[Manforallseasons]

This is what to expect! http://youtu.be/Mj9SUJdpJS4

[youtube:2h5hbtwn]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mj9SUJdpJS4[/youtube:2h5hbtwn]

[thaiguest]

"soon we will be all be wiped out by a virus or viruses"

Have you ever thought of taking a job writing for the Daily Mail in the UK here perhaps, it seems you'd fit right in with their usual style of editorial content.

I don't read the Daily Mail .
Can you troll in your Daily Comfort Zone and name a new effective antibiotic that has been discovered in the last 30 yrs.?
You obviously need to google each word but to get you started ; "anti" means "contrary or against".

[Nirish guy]

a) I wasn't trolling and I stand by my your "soon we will all be wiped out" is a bit much don't you think and b) Teixobactin ( see, now if YOU had googled using your own instructions starting with the word "Anti" instead of just being a sarky sod you might have even learnt about that all for yourself :-p


"The first new antibiotic to be discovered in nearly 30 years has been hailed as a тАШparadigm shiftтАЩ in the fight against the growing resistance to drugs. Teixobactin has been found to treat many common bacterial infections such as tuberculosis, septicaemia and C. diff, and could be available within five years.

Source Google and www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/scienc ... rough.html (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/science-news/11331174/First-new-antibiotic-in-30-years-discovered-in-major-breakthrough.html)

Ps Your welcome :-)

[cdnmatt]

Ah the latest medical hysteria. Remember SARS, Asian flu., etc , the list is endless.
Anyone know anybody personally who died from them?
Thought not....
Next topic please!

The day may not be far off when we'll all know somebody personally who has died from a viral infection. Doctors and scientists have been mixing and matching the same set of antibiotics for 30 years in a losing race against mutating viruses.
If new options are not found soon we will be all be wiped out by a virus or viruses before a meteor or a Yellowstone blow-out gets us.

What? So you're basically saying there's been no technological advances within the medical industry for 30 years? Are you high?

[Manforallseasons]

You might think, bacterial infections are caused by bacteria, and viral infections are caused by viruses. Perhaps the most important distinction between bacteria and viruses is that antibiotic drugs usually kill bacteria, but they aren't effective against viruses.(Mayo Clinic)

[Tobi]

Teixobactin has been found to treat many common bacterial infections such as tuberculosis, septicaemia and C. diff, and could be available within five years.

The operative word there is could and that Teixobactin may only treat common infections. In the meantime... http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-34269315

ps. Your welcome :-)

[Smiles]

You might think, bacterial infections are caused by bacteria, and viral infections are caused by viruses. Perhaps the most important distinction between bacteria and viruses is that antibiotic drugs usually kill bacteria, but they aren't effective against viruses.(Mayo Clinic)
Absolutely correct MFAS. Antibiotics are never used against viral infections because they don't work. Viruses are destroyed by vaccines only.
Thus, Thaiguest's know-it-all-ism are pretty much hogwash in this particular area. (Not unusual).
To wit:
" ... The day may not be far off when we'll all know somebody personally who has died from a viral infection. Doctors and scientists have been mixing and matching the same set of antibiotics for 30 years in a losing race against mutating viruses ... "
Once a vaccine has been discovered, tested, and used in the general population they have been, and continue to be, highly succesful.
Antibiotics on the other hand are starting to become problematical ... especially if over-used.

[Tobi]

" ... The day may not be far off when we'll all know somebody personally who has died from a viral infection. Doctors and scientists have been mixing and matching the same set of antibiotics for 30 years in a losing race against mutating viruses ... "

If you substitute "bacterial" for "viral" @thaiguest could very well be prescient.

[Smiles]

If you substitute "bacterial" for "viral" @thaiguest could very well be prescient.
Yeah yeah yeah ... well, I could substitute "Trump is a piece of moronic shit" for "Trump is just telling it like it is, eh, fantastic", no problem.
But I'd rather not be even half that presicient.
It still remains ... Thaiguest gets it wrong a lot of the time. Enough for folks to wonder about his, er, 'predictions'.

[thaiguest]

Ah the latest medical hysteria. Remember SARS, Asian flu., etc , the list is endless.
Anyone know anybody personally who died from them?
Thought not....
Next topic please!

The day may not be far off when we'll all know somebody personally who has died from a viral infection. Doctors and scientists have been mixing and matching the same set of antibiotics for 30 years in a losing race against mutating viruses.
If new options are not found soon we will be all be wiped out by a virus or viruses before a meteor or a Yellowstone blow-out gets us.

What? So you're basically saying there's been no technological advances within the medical industry for 30 years? Are you high?

No. I didn't mention technology.

At a time when medical research needs to redouble its efforts in the area of viral infection etc federal funding in the USA for instance has been reduced.

[thaiguest]

If you substitute "bacterial" for "viral" @thaiguest could very well be prescient.
Yeah yeah yeah ... well, I could substitute "Trump is a piece of moronic shit" for "Trump is just telling it like it is, eh, fantastic", no problem.
But I'd rather not be even half that presicient.
It still remains ... Thaiguest gets it wrong a lot of the time. Enough for folks to wonder about his, er, 'predictions'.

My Buddha what a nest of Google Doctors we have here!
Sawatdee Google Thailand.

[goji]

At a time when medical research needs to redouble its efforts in the area of viral infection etc federal funding in the USA for instance has been reduced.
Governments are so bad at allocating capital, perhaps that might be a good thing.

Seems like we need some innovations to deal with mosquitoes.
A couple of hundred useless governments might not achieve much, but I have higher hopes for 7 billion people & private sector capital.

The governments just need to create the right tax incentives for wiping out mosquitoes.

[thaiguest]

At a time when medical research needs to redouble its efforts in the area of viral infection etc federal funding in the USA for instance has been reduced.
Governments are so bad at allocating capital, perhaps that might be a good thing.

Seems like we need some innovations to deal with mosquitoes.
A couple of hundred useless governments might not achieve much, but I have higher hopes for 7 billion people & private sector capital.

The governments just need to create the right tax incentives for wiping out mosquitoes.
There are pros and cons with state and corporate medical research . Companies are very good agents of research but of course they're profit driven and thus explore the areas that will have a consumer base that can pay and this base often includes government as customers of course. The state /government has a duty to over-arch vested interests in laying down a strategy at the macro level for the common good but of couse the state moves slowly being the red-tape bound giant that it is. The WHO has had great success in wiping out diseases that plaqued humanity for thousands of years previously. But the next big push will come on the back of renewed and refinanced research by a combination of Nations. Tax incentives for private companies (some of which are bigger than states) sounds like a good idea in this regard.