Title shortened for space reasons. Full title: False-Negative Results of PCR Assay with Plasma of Patients with Severe Viral Hemorrhagic Fever.
Liberia: Catholic Hospital Boss Tested Positive of Ebola - Report
“According to cogent information gathered by this paper, Rev. Brother Patrick Nshamdze, was tested positive after he supposedly came in contact with a patient who died from the virus.
Our information divulged that on the 17th of this month, his specimen was taken and the result, which came on the next day (July 18), proved negative.
Not being satisfied, the report further divulged, the ailing Catholic hospital director decided to seek further treatment abroad, but his trip was subjected to Ebola test.
It was based on this that he did another test on Tuesday, July 29, 2014, which proved positive, contrary to the first test he underwent.
Rev. Bro. Nshamdze is currently being quarantined at the Catholic Hospital undergoing treatment.
The hospital authorities are contemplating on shutting down the hospital for two weeks for disinfection and chlorination of the entire building.”
Date: Fri 16 Nov 2012 Source: BBC World Service, Science and Environment [edited] http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-20341423
Canadian scientists have shown that the deadliest form of Ebolavirus could be transmitted by air between species.
In experiments, they demonstrated that the virus was transmitted from pigs to monkeys without any direct contact between them. The researchers say they believe that limited airborne transmission might be contributing to the spread of the disease in some parts of Africa. They are concerned that pigs might be a natural host for the lethal infection.
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Meanwhile passengers from suspect African cities are arriving on international flights, with minimal screening only for obvious symptoms, for a disease that is extremely contagious and that has an incubation period of up to 21 days.
It's a matter of time before it goes pandemic, if it hasn't already.
There will need to be a reliable screening method to determine who has contracted the Ebola virus. People are contagious when they don’t yet show symptoms. This is the time to start the screening process in the vector countries so those who are infected can be quarantined.
Where was it that the woman fleeing Sierra Leone collapsed and then her test was negative?
Yep.
This has been my concern.
Time will soon tell if any of these false-negatives turn into positives.
False negatives are common when testing for Ebola and Ebola-like viruses.
Ping...
Bring Out Your Dead
Post to me or FReep mail to be on/off the Bring Out Your Dead ping list.
The purpose of the “Bring Out Your Dead” ping list (formerly the “Ebola” ping list) is very early warning of emerging pandemics, as such it has a high false positive rate.
So far the false positive rate is 100%.
At some point we may well have a high mortality pandemic, and likely as not the “Bring Out Your Dead” threads will miss the beginning entirely.
*sigh* Such is life, and death...
Or you can just call it testing inaccuracies...which add to the mess we are already in now.