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    A Followup on the Zika/Rio Games Concerns

    http://abcnews.go.com/Health/zika-fe...ry?id=39426429

    Zika Fears Prompt 150 Public Health Experts to Call for Olympics to Be Moved From Rio

    A group of 150 prominent scientists, doctors and medical ethicists have signed a letter calling for this summer's Olympic Games to be postponed or moved from Rio de Janeiro due to the ongoing Zika virus outbreak in Brazil.

    In a letter directed to World Health Organization Director Dr. Margaret Chan, the group said that new findings about the Zika virus should result in the games being moved or postponed to safeguard the thousands of athletes, staff and reporters scheduled to attend the games.

    "Currently, many athletes, delegations, and journalists are struggling with the decision of whether to participate in the Rio 2016 Games," the group wrote. "We agree with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control recommendation that workers should 'Consider delaying travel to areas with active Zika virus transmission'. If that advice were followed uniformly, no athlete would have to choose between risking disease and participating in a competition that many have trained for their whole lives."

    The letter was initially signed by 125 experts, but an additional 25 signed on later today.

    New information about the Zika virus was cited by the group in the letter as an additional reason to postpone or move the games. The disease has been found to cause the birth defect microcephaly in pregnant women and has also been linked to an immunological reaction called Guillain-Barré syndrome.

    "That while Zika’s risk to any single individual is low, the risk to a population is undeniably high. Currently, Brazil’s government reports 120,000 probable Zika cases, and 1,300 confirmed cases of microcephaly (with another 3,300 under investigation), which is above the historical level of microcephaly," the group said.

    The group of experts also pointed out that current mosquito-killing programs in Rio were ineffective and that when they looked at dengue fever, which is spread by the same mosquitoes that spread Zika virus, the infections were up markedly in 2016 compared to the previous two years.

    The group also claimed the WHO had a conflict of interest due to a decades-long partnership with the International Olympic Committee and said previous statements by WHO officials have been "troubling."

    "To prejudge that 'there's not going to be a lot of problems,' before reviewing this evidence [on Zika virus effects] is extremely inappropriate of WHO, and suggests that a change in leadership may be required to restore WHO's credibility," the group wrote.

    The WHO and the International Olympic Committee did not immediately respond to ABC News' requests for comment.

    Art Caplan, director of the NYU Division of Medical Ethics and co-author of the letter, told ABC News that the group was not alleging any wrongdoing by the WHO or IOC but wanted to bring up these issues to spark a dialogue about the risks involved and encourage health officials unrelated to the Olympics to weigh in.

    "What we’re really focused on is can we have transparent, open, frank, televised, out-in-the-open discussion with experts" unconnected to the Olympics, Caplan said. "We think WHO is close to the IOC. ... They work together a lot."

    The big fear, Caplan said, is that the giant sporting event will enable the transmission of the virus through infected travelers to other parts of the globe that have yet to be affected by the disease.

    "We’re worried about bringing the mosquito back to places it isn’t, like India," Caplan aid. "You have people who will be infected and ... there are people literally coming from everywhere."

    Earlier this month, the director of the WHO addressed Zika virus fears amid the Olympics, saying the WHO would not call for the games to be moved but that they were using a "targeted approach" to decrease transmission and warning those most at risk not to visit the country.

    "I do share the concern of some athletes and travelers and, as I said, it is very much an individual decision," Chan said at the time. "The role of WHO is to provide them with support so they can make the right decision."
    So this is turning into a giant tug of war where in the end it'll be the positives of the money influx vs the negatives of any serious infection fallout that ultimately determine if this was a wise decision to continue. I'm personally not surprised that the event officials want to go through with it, there's alot at stake here but I'm really quite stunned that athletes wouldn't just call off their attendance/performance and that regular visitors are still somewhat interested in going is pretty crazy to me as you figure the random fan in the stands faces the MOST possibility of something happening not the athletes or event organizers all of whom can be isolated in much more secure locations before and after events.

    Pretty crazy situation altogether that you'd never catch me near for sure.
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  2. #2
    You only cancel olympics if half the world is at war with the other half. You don't cancel them because some douchebags wrote a letter.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by TheWalkinDude View Post
    I just spent 3 weeks in Brazil in April and spent a weekend in Rio. It's a gorgeous city and unless you plan on leaving the part of town where the Olympics are and venturing to the jungle or participating in unprotected sex with a native, I don't think you have much to worry about.
    It's a good thing Zika isn't transmitted by mosquitoes . . . .

    Moving the Olympics is a no-brainer. Zika is already traveling up the Americas and with people visiting from around the world it's almost a certainty it will turn into a pandemic.

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    Quote Originally Posted by cubby View Post
    It's a good thing Zika isn't transmitted by mosquitoes . . . .

    Moving the Olympics is a no-brainer. Zika is already traveling up the Americas and with people visiting from around the world it's almost a certainty it will turn into a pandemic.
    yeah. i live in Texas which houses one of the main vector mosquito species. We already have issues with WNV. Zika...oh yay!

    Also, mosquitoes CAN bite through clothing, so if one is to use mosquito spray they need to cover themselves completely in it.

  5. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by Kapadons View Post
    You only cancel olympics if half the world is at war with the other half. You don't cancel them because some douchebags wrote a letter.
    get all the edge out of your system with that one?

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    Quote Originally Posted by Sky High View Post
    get all the edge out of your system with that one?
    He missed his margarita lunch.

  7. #7
    Obama asked for $1.9 billion, congress is talking it over.
    .

    "This will be a fight against overwhelming odds from which survival cannot be expected. We will do what damage we can."

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    Quote Originally Posted by Hubcap View Post
    Obama asked for $1.9 billion, congress is talking it over.
    I'm not sure this addresses the OP's question.

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by Sky High View Post
    get all the edge out of your system with that one?
    How many times has the modern Olympics been canceled? 3. Every time it was either World War 1 or World War 2. You don't piss away the billions of dollars invested in making Rio Olympics ready because some people feel it may cause a global crisis. Especially one that could possibly have a monetary interest in seeing them moved.

    Edit - especially when the symtoms are "The most common symptoms of Zika are fever, rash, joint pain, or conjunctivitis (red eyes). Other common symptoms include muscle pain and headache" And the "cure" is bed rest and tylenol.

    Would you cancel or move the Olympics because some people had the flu or a bad cold was going around?

    http://www.cdc.gov/zika/symptoms/
    Last edited by Kapadons; 2016-05-27 at 10:40 PM.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Kapadons View Post
    How many times has the modern Olympics been canceled? 3. Every time it was either World War 1 or World War 2. You don't piss away the billions of dollars invested in making Rio Olympics ready because some people feel it may cause a global crisis. Especially one that could possibly have a monetary interest in seeing them moved.
    I think the point is that Rio has become un-ready and is at the same time rapidly becoming a pandemic source. And the reasons for moving the Olympics aren't just coming from people with financial profits to gain (although I am with you on hesitating if those were the only parties calling for a move).

  11. #11
    Quote Originally Posted by cubby View Post
    I think the point is that Rio has become un-ready and is at the same time rapidly becoming a pandemic source. And the reasons for moving the Olympics aren't just coming from people with financial profits to gain (although I am with you on hesitating if those were the only parties calling for a move).
    Maybe I'm just not understanding the mass hysteria about Zika. From the CDC website, it sounds similar the Flu or a bad cold but without the cough. Basically you feel aches in your body and run a fever.

  12. #12
    Quote Originally Posted by Kapadons View Post
    Maybe I'm just not understanding the mass hysteria about Zika. From the CDC website, it sounds similar the Flu or a bad cold but without the cough. Basically you feel aches in your body and run a fever.
    It causes birth defects / death as well.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Kapadons View Post
    How many times has the modern Olympics been canceled? 3. Every time it was either World War 1 or World War 2. You don't piss away the billions of dollars invested in making Rio Olympics ready because some people feel it may cause a global crisis. Especially one that could possibly have a monetary interest in seeing them moved.

    Edit - especially when the symtoms are "The most common symptoms of Zika are fever, rash, joint pain, or conjunctivitis (red eyes). Other common symptoms include muscle pain and headache" And the "cure" is bed rest and tylenol.

    Would you cancel or move the Olympics because some people had the flu or a bad cold was going around?

    http://www.cdc.gov/zika/symptoms/
    The biggest concerns are the effects on pregnant women - they are devastating. And the long term effects are completely unknown - for instance, if you've had Zika before does that mean that you will always have a huge chance of microencephalytis (sp?) in your babies?

    Kudos for checking the CDC website (not being sarcastic). No idea why it doesn't mention any of the pregnancy issues.

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    Quote Originally Posted by TheWalkinDude View Post
    I just spent 3 weeks in Brazil in April and spent a weekend in Rio. It's a gorgeous city and unless you plan on leaving the part of town where the Olympics are and venturing to the jungle or participating in unprotected sex with a native, I don't think you have much to worry about.
    Yes mosquito's only live in the jungle. Your vacation must have been spent inside buildings 99% of the time I'm guessing.

  15. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by Vanyali View Post
    It causes birth defects / death as well.
    I think this is what most people are worried about ya, although we're not really sure how much it affects birth defect rate because of how poorly brazil tracks this sort of thing.

    And it's not like a bad flu hasn't killed millions of people before.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Ripster42 View Post
    I think this is what most people are worried about ya, although we're not really sure how much it affects birth defect rate because of how poorly brazil tracks this sort of thing.

    And it's not like a bad flu hasn't killed millions of people before.
    A rapidly transmittable disease is bad enough - even if victims present with only mild flu-like symptoms. That kind of thing alone can become a pandemic - especially when you take into account the international travel nature of the Olympics (imagine if we'd had the Olympics planned where the Ebola outbreak occurred?). However, with the birth defect issue as the larger concern, it's a whole different ball game. Just for instance:

    How long does Zika stay in your system?
    Will you ever have "normal" babies
    What if Zika mutates (which all long-term viruses do)?
    What will it mutate into?

    Very little is known at the moment about Zika. The CDC just this year linked it to the birth defects. We're basically playing with fire keeping the Olympics in Rio (pun intended).

  17. #17
    Quote Originally Posted by cubby View Post
    A rapidly transmittable disease is bad enough - even if victims present with only mild flu-like symptoms. That kind of thing alone can become a pandemic - especially when you take into account the international travel nature of the Olympics (imagine if we'd had the Olympics planned where the Ebola outbreak occurred?). However, with the birth defect issue as the larger concern, it's a whole different ball game. Just for instance:

    How long does Zika stay in your system?
    Will you ever have "normal" babies
    What if Zika mutates (which all long-term viruses do)?
    What will it mutate into?

    Very little is known at the moment about Zika. The CDC just this year linked it to the birth defects. We're basically playing with fire keeping the Olympics in Rio (pun intended).
    "Zika virus usually remains in the blood of an infected person for about a week but it can be found longer in some people."

    Seems it's not in you for that long.

  18. #18
    Quote Originally Posted by cubby View Post
    A rapidly transmittable disease is bad enough - even if victims present with only mild flu-like symptoms. That kind of thing alone can become a pandemic - especially when you take into account the international travel nature of the Olympics (imagine if we'd had the Olympics planned where the Ebola outbreak occurred?). However, with the birth defect issue as the larger concern, it's a whole different ball game. Just for instance:

    How long does Zika stay in your system?
    Will you ever have "normal" babies
    What if Zika mutates (which all long-term viruses do)?
    What will it mutate into?

    Very little is known at the moment about Zika. The CDC just this year linked it to the birth defects. We're basically playing with fire keeping the Olympics in Rio (pun intended).
    Agreed. *tin foil hat time!* It's almost like the WHO realizes there's no point in containment because it's already too widespread.

    Edit: I don't mean to imply I don't agree with you. I really do agree with you.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Kapadons View Post
    "Zika virus usually remains in the blood of an infected person for about a week but it can be found longer in some people."

    Seems it's not in you for that long.
    That's what we know NOW. The issue is that this is a rapidly transmitted disease and we have barely scratched the surface on what it can do. On your particular point, does it affect the genome of a woman in such a way as to prevent normal births in the future. And that's just me, a non-scientist - I'm sure the people in the CDC are going absolutely ape-shit over Rio and the Olympics. I do know that a few athletes have already bowed out (who had qualified to go) because of Zika.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Kapadons View Post
    "Zika virus usually remains in the blood of an infected person for about a week but it can be found longer in some people."

    Seems it's not in you for that long.
    I think I read somewhere it may remain in sperm for many months.
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