A new case of Ebola has been confirmed in Sierra Leone, officials said Thursday, the second since west Africa celebrated the end of the epidemic last week.
The fresh outbreak has prompted the country to re-open its Ebola treatment centres and relaunch screening systems, including checkpoints on motorways, a grim reminder of the much feared tropical virus.
I am slightly surprised it hasn’t emerged as an STD yet, given the propensity of it to remain in semen post-infection.
The only reasons we have been able to suppress it this far is free resources to devote to control efforts, a well nourished populace, and relatively well functioning governments. Take away the WHO’s funding, let famine set in, and let the governments begin to break down, and things like this will be much worse.
That is coming, but not for now. When it comes, being able to isolate oneself will become a vital part of a prudent survival strategy.
It is an STD. It remains biologically active in semen for months, hence this sudden outbreak.
Further information:
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2015/10/new-evidence-parts-ebola-virus-hide-semen-months
http://www.who.int/reproductivehealth/topics/rtis/ebola-virus-semen/en/
http://www.nhs.uk/news/2015/10October/Pages/Is-Ebola-an-STI-Virus-can-survive-in-semen-for-up-to-nine-months.aspx
http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1511410
It might last longer, depending on type. It might be like HPV, and remain dormant, hard to detect, only to spontaneously reoccur when the immune system is weakened (say, by famine) years after the fact. There isn’t enough data to say.
I wonder if it would be a good idea to start my own farmstead. On the one hand you are isolated with a supply of food and water. On the other hand you present yourself as a target for the mob, much like Hershel’s farm in TWD.