Worrying news article.
- Thread starter GuestD
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Here in western North America, it's been the commercial transport of livestock and pets.
No faster way to spread ticks and lice has ever been found.
Like the UK, transport goes on all year long,
faster than annual migrations of birds which they have observed.
No faster way to spread ticks and lice has ever been found.
Like the UK, transport goes on all year long,
faster than annual migrations of birds which they have observed.
There was this report in October, tick borne encephalitis.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-50206382
If it's midge borne then I'll worry. For some reason ticks never bite me but midges see me as an absolute banquet. I have heard anecdotally that you're usually midge food or tick food.
It's quite worrying when new bugs reach or spread through our island. It's the likely delayed diagnosis and similarity to common flu/ cold like symptoms that's the issue. I remember decades ago reading about leptospirosis in my early kayaking days. Someone I knew had it and for 6 months was out of action. My dad worked for the water utility sector once and carried a card for it. Back then most GPs would write off the symptoms as flu. I read that if suspected the gp had to treat as if it's leptospirosis with ABs. It's too late or more serious if you wait for test results.
I think that these new bugs are similar. But being new most GPs won't catch them. Imho it's this factor that's the most worrying. There's treatment but earlier the better. Diagnosis isn't going to be guaranteed early = people in serious condition before treatment starts. This is why as outdoor types we all need to learn these symptoms and educate the gp if you're ill with similar symptoms after a potential exposure.
It's quite worrying when new bugs reach or spread through our island. It's the likely delayed diagnosis and similarity to common flu/ cold like symptoms that's the issue. I remember decades ago reading about leptospirosis in my early kayaking days. Someone I knew had it and for 6 months was out of action. My dad worked for the water utility sector once and carried a card for it. Back then most GPs would write off the symptoms as flu. I read that if suspected the gp had to treat as if it's leptospirosis with ABs. It's too late or more serious if you wait for test results.
I think that these new bugs are similar. But being new most GPs won't catch them. Imho it's this factor that's the most worrying. There's treatment but earlier the better. Diagnosis isn't going to be guaranteed early = people in serious condition before treatment starts. This is why as outdoor types we all need to learn these symptoms and educate the gp if you're ill with similar symptoms after a potential exposure.
Well it's just an anecdote as they both like me!
I will qualify that by saying that I've regularly been in the outdoors my whole life and hadn't suffered from any tick bites until this year, when I've had 2. This is with taking all the usual precautions. I guess permethrin impregnated clothes is next!
There's always an overlap, I guess you're in the middle of the venn diagram. Unlucky!
If it's any better if you walked with me through midge infested areas you'd not get a bite. Or if you do it'll be one of the few midges that gave up trying to find me. I'm seriously the best midge protection for other people.
I'd rather the midges than ticks. I've carried ticks on my tshirt sleeve and once watched one crawl down my arm onto the sofa at home. I then killed it. It hadn't eaten as it was tiny in the body. Aiui they swell up when fed.
If it's any better if you walked with me through midge infested areas you'd not get a bite. Or if you do it'll be one of the few midges that gave up trying to find me. I'm seriously the best midge protection for other people.
I'd rather the midges than ticks. I've carried ticks on my tshirt sleeve and once watched one crawl down my arm onto the sofa at home. I then killed it. It hadn't eaten as it was tiny in the body. Aiui they swell up when fed.
Just read that two people have died in china from Bubonic plague, (AKA The Black Death...................scary music playing in the background.) apparently after eating rabbits, now I assume they had hunted the rabbits which were infected with fleas carrying the disease, I now wonder how long it will be before it gets here, I mean if anyone watches the Australian Customs Programme which often features people from China attempting to import all kinds of vegetation and animal products into Oz, you have to ask yourself how vigilant are our Border Controls.
We are facing catastrophe from the latest swine flu, which is estimated to kill a third of all the pigs in the world, and which is spreading all over Europe at the moment, and as most of these disease originate in the far east, we need to find out how they are spreading so fast, obviously air travel being the biggest factor in the spread of disease.
Even though we are an island we are not immune in any way.
We are facing catastrophe from the latest swine flu, which is estimated to kill a third of all the pigs in the world, and which is spreading all over Europe at the moment, and as most of these disease originate in the far east, we need to find out how they are spreading so fast, obviously air travel being the biggest factor in the spread of disease.
Even though we are an island we are not immune in any way.
It’s been around for ever, pneumonia is considered far more dangerous. In this case it wasn’t spread by fleas either, they were infected by handling the animal. First report of this I read, the liver of the rabbit had been eaten, but I can’t substantiate that. There are 3 forms of this plague, pneumonic (lungs), bubonic (lymph system), septicaemic (blood). Over 2000 people were infected in Madagascar in 2017.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/13/two-people-diagnosed-with-pneumonic-plague-in-china
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