Let’s see how many we can tick (pun intentional).
Experts are warning that Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) poses the most significant current risk to public health, highlighting its highly contagious nature and the severe pain it causes.
‘Experts.’ Check. ‘Pandemic.’ Check. ‘Public health.’ Check.
Prof Wood, an academic from the University of Cambridge, further explained: “You’d be unlikely to get the sort of respiratory transmission. So even say, I don’t want to call them extreme lockdown enthusiasts, but, someone who thinks that these measures are very important to, to impose straightaway, I don’t think it would be appropriate as it’s not right for this form of infection.”
At least he doesn’t think lockdowns are going to work. Well, they don’t, but at least someone is saying it. Still, we should all be scared, right?
While CCHF is primarily transmitted through ticks, which are often carried by migratory birds, the likelihood of human-to-human transmission is lower.
Maybe don’t run for the hills just yet.
However, with the impact of global warming leading to the movement of various tick species towards warmer regions, the UK may become susceptible to the virus, especially considering the return of June’s heatwave.
Ah, yeah, climate change, check! As for the heatwave, we had a couple of warm weeks followed by the usual washout.
The reality here is that if you do get bitten by an infected tick, it could be serious, but we already live with potentially serious diseases milling about and we carry on okay. Really, we aren’t all going to drop dead.
This year has been really bad for tics we think it’s the early dry season. Luckily dogs can have a tablet, once a month, kills fleas and tics. So a cure is out there, just needs adapting to humans.
Our cats get a regular flea and tick treatment too. I have had cats in the house for pretty much my whole life and I’ve never seen a tick on any of them. Mentioning climate change always make me suspicious that he might be full of crap too.
I had a bit of a tick problem when we lived in France. They are easily removed with a little tool you can get from the vet. Otherwise, regular flea and tick treatment applies. Really, this is a big fuss about nothing much. Sure, it’s a potential risk, but a manageable one.
They have to use climate change to deflect attention from the sh!t crossing the channel.
But that itself is caused by Climate Armageddon.
This forces men between age 18 and 35 to leave their womenfolk and children and seek cooler benefits.
Really, we aren’t all going to drop dead.
I think that’s the only thing we can actually be certain of.
Probably not from Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever though.
Well, yes eventually and not all at the same time.
I grew up and lived in Zambia (ex-Northern Rhodesia) where ticks were commonplace. Daily de-ticking the dog was the order of the day. Tick-fever existed but I never saw or heard of any cases. Yes, I sometimes had to pluck ticks from my ankles but without ill effect as I made sure that the tick’s head came out. Crimean Congo Haemorrhagic Fever? What’s the connection between the Crimea and the Congo??
Apparently it’s actually quite prevalent around the world, but there were historically two diseases – Crimean Hemorrhagic Fever and Congo Hemorrhagic Fever. Then modern magic medicine found there were actually the same virus so they combined the names.
When i say prevalent, we’re talking cases per year in the low hundreds.
TB meanwhile kills about 2 million per year…
50th Parallel North is roughly where the English Channel is, so plate tectonics will need to increase apace Southwards before it becomes a problem here in Perth, Scotland.
As for the references to Warble Gloaming, utter wibble.
In the UK for 2019 (before the lockdowns) there were 1,752 reported road deaths, similar to the level seen since 2012. 153,158 casualties of all severities in reported road traffic accidents, a decrease of 5% compared to 2018.
UK statistics for Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF): Two confirmed cases (ex-Afghanistan 2012, ex-Bulgaria 2014). But zero naturally occurring cases in the UK.
So if you set traffic deaths as the guideline for concern there is still an enormous way to go for CCHF. My suspicion is that some artless journalist needed to generate a few column inches or pixels.