Lexis

I was surfing Google News and came across this account of Angola's current Marburg outbreak from a doctor working over there - I've been following the story through Daily Kos but this account really got me.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4442171.stm

There are some FAQ's at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/me...es/4408289.stm

Its so sad - apparently with the right medical support, people can recover but obviously, the facilities available aren't enough.

(BTW - did we have a thread on this? I could have sworn I saw one but when I looked, I couldn't see it - must be getting old!)

JW77

Very sad stuff. And like you said, if there was better medical support in some of the poor areas, maybe more people would survive. That's what gets to me.

Oh, by the way, I don't think there was a thread on this.

mh67511

Thanks for the FAQ; I didn't know what the disease was.

It's always sad when people in poor areas suffer from diseases that could be treated with medical care. It makes me very thankful to have good health insurance through my parents.

Lexis

It really is terrible - people are afraid to take their loved ones to hospital because so many come back in body bags. Therefore, they keep them at hope and take care of them, only to become infected by contact with their blood because they don't know how it spreads. Education is really the key - in some places, doctors have been attacked because the villiagers fear its they who are bringing the illness.

I also think its a crime that this hasn't been reported very widely in the mainstream media - wait until a Western oil worker gets sick, then it'll get a mention.