Before 1999, West Nile virus had never been found in the Western Hemisphere. West Nile virus disease is a potentially serious illness spread by mosquitoes. Note: Aspects of the original outbreaks and investigations have been altered to fit the format and length of this application. But because much of the mining activities continue, the outbreak has not ended. CDC, Nigerian authorities, Doctors Without Borders, and other organizations have worked hard to provide chelation therapy and to repair the environment by removing contaminated soil. Scientists have called this the worst case of mass lead poisoning in modern times.Ĭonditions were especially bad because much of the mining was done in family compounds, where children were exposed to huge amounts of lead through dust and other means. The cause of the outbreak was traced to what is called 'artisanal gold mining,' or small-scale mining using primitive tools and little, if any, protective equipment. CDC scientists raced to the scene, where tests quickly showed that the children (and some adults) had severe lead poisoning. In May 2010, Doctors Without Borders contacted the CDC and other groups after it discovered that a staggering number of children were dying in villages in a remote part of Zamfara Province.

This fictional scenario is based on a real-life outbreak that is still claiming lives in Nigeria. Based on the epi curve, which of the following do you think is happening? Household dust is a major source of lead, so parents should wet-mop floors and wet-wipe horizontal surfaces every 2-3 weeks.ĥ.They should not participate in activities that disturb old paint or in cleaning up paint debris after work is completed. Pregnant women and children should not be present in housing built before 1978 that is undergoing renovation.Prevent children from playing in bare soil if possible, provide them with sandboxes.

Create barriers between living/play areas and lead sources.Hands and toys can become contaminated from household dust or exterior soil. Regularly wash children's hands and toys.Make sure children do not have access to peeling paint or chewable surfaces painted with lead-based paint.To avoid lead poisoning in the US, follow these tips: However, in the US, when children have high blood lead levels, it's usually because of lead-based paint (which was banned from use in housing in 1978) and lead-contaminated dust. In this outbreak, lead dust from the mines was to blame. Note: Several aspects of the original outbreaks and investigations have been altered to fit the format and length of this application. In 2001, Disease Detectives helped solve an anthrax terrorist attack which affected many people across the United States. Disease Detectives worked in each of these cases to determine the cause of the outbreak.Īnthrax also has been used as a bioterrorist threat in the United States. In 2009, a New Hampshire woman became sick with gastrointestinal anthrax (a very rare form of the disease that causes flu-like symptoms, sore throat, nausea, and diarrhea) after participating in a drumming event. Your hard work helped to solve this outbreak!Īlthough this scenario was not real, there have been several real-life investigations of anthrax illness involving drums made of contaminated animal hides.ĭisease Detectives worked in 2006 to determine that a drum maker in Pennsylvania caught inhalation anthrax by working with dried goat hides that had traces of anthrax spores.

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