<p>Even in the best of circumstances dead bodies void fluids of one kind and another (leaving to imagination). If bodies are washed and cleaned and handled as part of the mourning process there would be even more contact with those fluids.</p>
<p>I have never heard that a virus “jumped” off a dead body onto a person, so can’t address that at all. Seems far more likely that people dealing with the deceased get body fluids on them which still have active virus.</p>
<p>^I am sure that’s what people meant by jumping. I am sure no one is suggesting ebola virus mutated to a flea.</p>
<p>^^^nothing would surprise me now.</p>
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<p>Do the math. Notice the exponentials. Discover that Ebola, with an R0 of 1 to 2 with a mortality rate of 70%, and smallpox, an R0 of 5 to 7 with a mortality rate of 30%, are not remotely the same.</p>
<p>Let’s say that Ed has Ebola and Sarah has smallpox. We’ll use the high estimate of R0 for both diseases, 2 for Ebola and 7 for smallpox, so we can work with integer numbers of people.</p>
<p>After one generation of infection, Ed has infected 2 people. Sarah has infected 7. After two generations, 6 people have gotten Ebola from Ed or the people he infected and 56 people have smallpox from Sarah or the people she infected. After three generations, 14 people have Ebola and 399 have smallpox. After four generations, 30 people have gotten Ebola, and 2800 have gotten smallpox.</p>
<p>So after just four generations of infection, Ed has infected 30 people, of whom 21 have died. Sarah has infected 2800 people, of whom 840 are dead. Now do you see why smallpox is worse?</p>
<p>I am not convinced with Ebola R0 1 or 2. Do you have a link you can post?</p>
<p>Everyone above a certain age has been vaccinated against smallpox and smallpox no longer exists in the wild. </p>
<p>Why all the fuss about smallpox?</p>
<p>I started it to get some sense how much the present “panic” is justified</p>
<p><a href=“Eurosurveillance | Early transmission dynamics of Ebola virus disease (EVD), West Africa, March to August 2014”>http://www.eurosurveillance.org/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=20894</a></p>
<p><a href=“Early Epidemic Dynamics of the West African 2014 Ebola Outbreak: Estimates Derived with a Simple Two-Parameter Model – PLOS Currents Outbreaks”>http://currents.plos.org/outbreaks/article/obk-14-0036-early-epidemic-dynamics-of-the-west-african-2014-ebola-outbreak-estimates-derived-with-a-simple-two-parameter-model/</a></p>
<p>The fact that a cleaning lady stealing from clients was one of the top news stories on local tv here says something about the quiescence of the issue.</p>
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<p>I can see where there would be contact with some bodily fluids after death, but not more than before hand. Perhaps more people are handling the body than those who helped with the clean-up while living, I don’t know.</p>
<p>Journalist/cameraman has no idea how he contracted Ebola. </p>
<p><a href=“Ashoka Mukpo says he's not sure how he caught Ebola”>http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-ebola-ashoka-mukpo-20141020-story.html</a></p>
<p>It’s also interesting that the son of the Liberian president is a doctor practicing in Georgia. He has lived here for many years and has no intention of going back to Liberia to help with the Ebola crisis there. </p>
<p>Oh,and the other physician treated at Emory was released yesterday. Its been very quiet. He wanted to remain anonymous. He had been critically ill but has recovered and is not contagious. Hope he’ll be willing to donate plasma if needed. <a href=“http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/ebola-patient-released-atlanta-hospital-26327714”>http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/ebola-patient-released-atlanta-hospital-26327714</a></p>
<p>He says, “I was around a lot of sick people the week before I got sick." So although he doesn’t know exactly how he got infected, it’s not astounding that someone who was around a lot of people who had Ebola would contract Ebola himself.</p>
<p>When people die (all people not just Ebola victims) they void whatever is left and it is messy. If the family preparation of the body happens at home they are bathing, drying, and possibly wrapping the body in addition to and laying on of hands by mourners. Mourners in many cultures are much more demonstrative that they are in most North American cultures. They would also be moving and carrying the body possibly to lie in state and certainly to the grave site (before removal teams were in place). Ebola victims have the added level of interest as their internal organs have essentially liquefied. At the point of death and beyond the virus is still alive and multiplying so it is more virulent than even towards the end of life. The New Yorker article that was linked talks about a woman who traveled to a funeral and contracted Ebola from the dead “healer”.</p>
<p>CF Thank you for the links. I’ll read them later in detail. A quick glance at the table for Sierra Leone cases only R0 = 8.33. Why would it be so high? </p>
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<p>The President of Liberia went to Harvard (Kennedy School), and spoke at my D’s graduation.</p>
<p>"When people die (all people not just Ebola victims) they void whatever is left and it is messy. "</p>
<p>A rather gruesome description of the process and why this happens can be found in one of Crichton’s books - Timeline.</p>
<p>More R naught comparisons:</p>
<p><a href=“No, Seriously, How Contagious Is Ebola? : Shots - Health News : NPR”>No, Seriously, How Contagious Is Ebola? : Shots - Health News : NPR; </p>
<p>Hope everyone is up-to-date on their measles vaccinations!</p>