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Responding to Biological Attacks - How dangerous could biological
terrorism be?
The anthrax-laced letters mailed in the fall of 2001 infected and killed
many people - a toll that only hinted at the damage that terrorism
involving biological weapons might eventually cause. In 2001, in an
American government exercise called Dark Winter, a simulated "worst-case"
terrorist attack with smallpox virus-a germ even more worrisome than
the anthrax bacterium because it's contagious-was projected to cause
some 300,000 smallpox cases within three weeks, about one in three of
which would be fatal. Plague, anthrax, and other diseases could also be
major killers. The more contagious the disease, the bigger the problem.
Have terrorists experimented with biological weapons before?
Yes! Central Intelligence Agency sources have testified that documents
found in Afghanistan showed that Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda terrorist
network was pursuing sophisticated biological weapons research in
Afghanistan. Aum Shinrikyo, a doomsday cult in Japan, had an ambitious
biological weapons program and released anthrax spores or botulinum
toxin in Tokyo on several occasions, but none of the attacks inflicted
any known casualties. Moreover, Iraq, the Soviet Union, and other
countries experimented extensively with anthrax bacteria and other germs
as recently as the 1990s. (The United States abandoned its offensive
biowarfare program in 1969 and destroyed its biological arsenal in the
early 1970s.)
How is the world responding to the threat of bioterrorism?
Through a wide variety of measures, in areas ranging from diplomacy to
law enforcement to public health. Countering bioterrorism has been
designated a top priority by the United States of America. Funding to
combat bioterrorism was increasing even before September 11 and the
anthrax letters, but it shot up in their wake. A June 2002 bioterrorism
law provides $4.6 billion for stockpiling medicines and vaccines,
enhancing inspections of the nation's food supply, increasing
water-system security, and improving hospital preparedness.
What diseases should we be most worried about?
The "Category A" list of biological threat agents-as classified by
the CDC-includes the germs that cause anthrax, botulism, plague,
smallpox, tularemia, and hemorrhagic fever viruses such as Ebola. These
infectious diseases cause potentially high death rates, could trigger
public panic, and require special action to cure and contain. A few are
contagious-smallpox, plague, and Ebola. More than a dozen other types
of biological disease threats are classified by the CDC as generally
less dangerous but still capable of killing many victims.
How would health authorities discover that a biological attack was
underway?
Bioterrorism can be hard to detect, experts say. Environmental
monitoring might be able to pick up signs of an airborne release of
germs, assuming authorities knew where to look. But an attack could go
unnoticed until victims felt sick and visited doctors and hospitals, at
which point unusual cases or trends could be spotted.
Can vaccines guard against bioterrorism?
Effective vaccines exist for most of the likely bioterrorist threats,
although not for all of them. Medical experts often counsel against
preventive public vaccinations because the risk of serious complications
outweighs the current low risk of exposure to the different agents. In
the event of an actual smallpox outbreak, however, the vaccine could be
used to protect people who have not yet been exposed, as well as to
prevent disease in infected individuals if administered within four days
of exposure, before symptoms develop.
Can drugs be used to stop a bioterrorism attack?
Antibiotics such as ciproflaxacin (widely known as Cipro) and
doxycycline have been proven effective against bacterial diseases such
as anthrax. But drugs tend to be less effective against viral diseases.
Governments all over the world are rapidly building its stockpiles of
medicines to fight the most dangerous germs, although experts worry that
in the event of a bioterrorist attack, there would not be enough
transportation and personnel in place to distribute the drugs and
vaccines efficiently. They also worry that excessive or inappropriate
use of antibiotics-such as the panicked use of Cipro by people not at
risk of anthrax exposure-might lessen their effectiveness down the
road by fostering the evolution of antibiotic-resistant strains of
bacteria.
How does a hospital prepare to respond to bioterrorism?
Experts say preparedness includes having a well-trained staff, isolation
wards, a stockpile of necessary drugs and vaccines, and an established
bioterrorism response plan. Fewer than 20 percent of hospitals
nationwide have such a plan, and most of the existing plans have not
been tested by realistic exercises.
What should I do if I think I'm the victim of bioterrorism?
Report persistent or unusual symptoms to your doctor. Flu-like symptoms
are probably just that-the flu. Although the potential danger is real,
bioterrorism is still extraordinarily rare |
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