Remember the Ebola scare in May?
As 42 days (two incubation periods) have passed since the last possible exposure to a confirmed Ebola virus disease case, on 24 July 2018, the Minister of Health, Dr Oly Ilunga announced the end of the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. (from the World Health Organization)
Lessons were learned from the West Africa epidemic of 2014 to 2016 and applied in the Congo. Additionally, a vaccine was available this time around. Nobody who was vaccinated became ill with Ebola. The response was coordinated by the Democratic Republic of Congo and the World Health Organization. Much more at the link about the public health response.
That’s pretty good in a nation that is still torn by war. Congratulations and thanks to all who stopped the epidemic.
Mr.Mack
That really is extraordinary.
Mike in NC
But will “Fox & Friends” just call this Fake News, causing Trump to tweet about bombing the Congo? Stay tuned.
germy
You mean the republicans won’t be able to use it to fearmonger during the midterms?
efgoldman
@Mike in NC:
I think the Air Force won’t bomb any place that Weasel Face can’t locate for them on a map
? Martin
Can we hire them to run our country?
Mandalay
Why do people feel the need to invoke science and nasty pointy needles and icky viruses for explanations, when there is a much more obvious answer?
Can they prove it wasn’t actually thoughts and prayers that fixed this?
Doug R
I heard the Canadians were working on a vaccine. Is that it?
Adam L Silverman
@Mike in NC: No, they’ll have Jenny McCarthy on to explain why the ebola vaccine caused her kid’s autism.
AnonPhenom
It is something like this, an outbreak, that I fear most with the clueless fools in charge in D.C.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, et al. for picking up the slack.
We are not THE exceptional country. We ARE obligated to pull our weight.
Doug R
@Doug R: Looks like it was the Canadian vaccine.
Like they say with diabetes, Banting be Best.
Another Scott
@germy: Don’t give them any ideas…
The Lancet:
(Emphasis added)
I’m sure the RWNJs are trying to find a way to spin this into “OMG! We have to stop all travel from Africa as travelers might have undetected Ebola!!11 We must all hide under our beds and cancel the elections, also too!!11ONE”
:-/
Cheers,
Scott.
Cheryl Rofer
@Doug R: Seems to be American.
Brachiator
Yes, wonderful news. Now, if only we could do something about this outbreak of bigotry, fear and stupidity that is happening in America among conservatives with a virulent outbreak of Trumps.
trollhattan
Notes from the Redding, CA Carr fire, as of 9:30 this morning, local time:
98,724 acres – 20% contained (SF is 30k acres)
723 residences, 3 commercial structures, 240 outbuildings destroyed – 159 residences, 4 commercial structures and 30 outbuildings damaged
Structures Threatened: 5,012
Known deaths: 6
And a fire progress map to ponder.
Mike in Pasadena
The news from the Congo really is the kind of good news the world needs.
AnonPhenom
@Brachiator:
Haven’t you heard?
All that’s needed is for those on the Left to be more tolerant of the Right’s intolerance.
Sometimes I’m convinced that every Times opinion writer is trapped in an abusive relationship and is trying to work it out IRL at work.
Yarrow
I visited a doctor today and there is a sign on the door of the clinic that says to let them know if you have traveled outside the country recently, especially to any African countries. The sign has been there for at least six months, the last time I went to this particular doctor’s office.
AnonPhenom
@Yarrow:
There’s a few more besides Ebola they’re worried about.
JCJ
This is great news. My brother spent one year in Uganda teaching at a medical school and now plans on working at least one month every year in various hospitals. Concern of ebola was something that weighed on his mind.
Patricia Kayden
@AnonPhenom: I’ve thankfully reached my NYT limit so can’t read anymore of its drivel for the next 30 days. Lucky moi.
Raoul
This is genuinely good news. For the people of Congo. For Africa more broadly. And, sorry to say I am even thinking of this, good news for us. I’ve been mildly worried that we’d end up with another outbreak like we did in 2014.
The Trump Admin are colossal fuckups. What was a very limited loss of life then in the US would quite possibly be much worse if our hideous, distended gas giant of a potus would have to deal with anything similar.
Adam L Silverman
@Doug R: It’s a maple syrup based vector that blocks transmission of the disease. They’re also working on a poutine based antidote.
TenguPhule
@Adam L Silverman:
Cure is worse then the disease.
Adam L Silverman
@TenguPhule: No doubt. I’d be okay with a Horton’s donut based antidote, but draw the line at the poutine.
Cermet
While I discussed this vaccine at the onset of the start of that illness in the Congo a few months ago and mentioned they had a lot of experienced people ready and willing to help spread the vaccine, the media focused on the original outbreak some years ago to heighten fears. But where are the anti-vaccine nutcases now? All of cases of autism that must be problematic for that poor country …wait, that never occurs (however, Tylenol has a possible link to causing Autism; though its link to liver failure is proven and far too common.) This defeat of Ebola does prove that with smart people and money, a terrible illness like Ebola can be defeated even in a war torn third world country – amazing.
Yutsano
@Adam L Silverman: You are dead to me.
Ohio Mom
@Yarrow: Here in Cincinnati, those signs were up for several years but are now gone. For a while, I got asked the “Have you traveled outside the country” question every visit, and my kid was going through a stage of a lot of doctor visits. I started feeling a little bummed out, being forced to realize I hadn’t been out of my county in months, let alone out of my state. Other people were obviously having a lot more fun traveling than I was.
@Cermet: I am sure there are plenty of people with autism in Africa, but whether or not they are accurately identified is another matter. We can’t even get solid numbers in very developed nations, partly because we keep changing the diagnostic criteria and because the end, it is a professional judgement.
There are no doubt many autisms, with many etiologies, many presentations, and many different outcomes.
I’m at the point that I think it’s a fool’s errand to look for causes (yes, there is a joke in there about the people who chase after vaccines as the cause).
I’m much more interested in the political side of providing the needed
supports for all the neuro-diverse among us.
After all, we know the causes of a number of developmental disabilities — Down Syndrome is only one example — and that knowledge contributes nothing to developing treatments, interventions or anything else useful.
different-church-lady
Uhhh… no.
Bobby Thomson
@germy:
Have you met Republicans? The 2014 “outbreak” was a nothing burger they ate to victory.
Felanius Kootea
@Cheryl Rofer: From your link, the vaccine used in the Congo appears to be the Canadian vaccine developed in partnership with Merck, partly funded by Gavi and tested in the West African country of Guinea at the tail end of the 2014-2016 outbreak. It uses a “genetically engineered version of vesicular stomatitis virus, an animal virus that primarily affects cattle.”
The American developed vaccine has been tested in London but is not the vaccine used in West Africa or, now, the Congo.
I’m just happy that there’s more than one vaccine out there for Ebola.