Epidemiology of Bio-Terrorism - Essay Example

Bio-Terrorism Introduction The article provides a complete outlook on the epidemiology of bio-terrorism. Bio-terrorism has been in the books for the past two or three decades. America has been the major victim of bio-terrorism. The country has been affected by this many a times. Inhalational anthrax is the major form of bio-terrorism. People who work in textile and leather industries are more prone to this disease as they are in constant contact with animal related products. The bacteria in these products, Bacillus Anthracis, caused this disease.

Many states in America were worst hit by this disease and this has been purposely carried out by people who are intended to do harm to others. Terrorism donned a new role and it took the form of bio-terrorism in which hazardous chemicals were used to attack people. Anthrax was the first material used in bio-terrorism. (Grey, 2006). The article provides a complete picture of the stages in which anthrax affects a person. But the article fails to explain the methods adopted by the terrorists who perform this task.

The epidemiological framework consists of various methods and modules. During the 1800’s and 1900’s, people in America were affected by Bacillus Anthracis. People who were in direct contact with the animal products and its related industries were the only victims. (Jernigan, 1996). In the mid-1900’s, America saw the first case of inhalational anthrax. In this case, anthrax was purposely used to attack a person. People who came in direct contact with it were affected by this bacterium. People who worked in the postal department were most prone to getting affected by this disease.

Epidemiology The patient’s clinical data was collected and tested and the reports confirmed that these people were affected by inhalational anthrax. (Koehler, 2003). It is one of the epidemic diseases and each of the affected patient’s exhibited different symptoms but most of them had fever, chills and fatigue. The patients were treated with median incubation after which they were given certain antibiotics. Pleural effusion was the common problem in all the patients who were affected by anthracis.

Though antibiotics were given, some of them showed no signs of improvement. (Guillemin, 2004).The complication depended on the case history of the patients. Inhalational anthrax affected the chest of the person who inhales it. It was a common phenomenon and chest x-ray of the patients revealed certain abnormalities in the chest. Though the counts of white blood corpuscles of most of the patients were normal, they showed some signs of abnormality. Most of them showed signs of improvement and they were advised to continue the antibiotics for a certain period of time.

This clearly portrays the epidemiological framework of one of the deadliest disease caused by Bacillus anthracis. Bio-terrorism affected most of the states in America. This article emphasizes on the facts of bio-terrorism. It also shows how it affects a country without directly involving in terroristic activities. (Farb, 2005).People did not have any clue as to who has implemented this sort of bio-terrorism. Since it led to death in many cases, it created a wave of fear among the residents of America.

The disease control centers in America started implementing prevention measures to save the people from this disease. ConclusionThough this article provides information on the severity of anthrax and the problems associated with it, the reader does not get a clear view on how it affects the other parts of a human body. Another drawback is that the article does not explain the various forms in which inhalational anthrax spreads in a person. Works CitedJernigan, John. Bio-terrorism Related Inhalational Anthrax. Web. 22 October 2010.

< http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol7no6/pdf/jernigan.pdf> Koehler, Theresa. Anthrax. U.S.A: Springer Publications, 2003. Print.Guillemin, Jeanne. Anthrax: The Investigation of a Deadly Outbreak. U.S.A: University of California Press, 2004. Print Farb, Daniel. Bio Terrorism: Handbook. Los Angeles: University of Health Care, 2005. Print.Grey, Michael. The Bioterrorism Sourcebook. U.K: McGraw Hill Publications, 2006. Print.