An electronic library on bioterrorism is
available
with 1,600+ news articles that appeared in this site during two years from October 2001
through September 2003. The information, in a standard printable format free of
advertising, is intended for teachers, scholars, students, health professionals and
the
general public. The site should be especially useful for contemporary historians and others who are interested in issues and events that
greatly transformed American priorities and funding following the devastating
air attack of September 11, 2001. Please feel
encouraged to share this unique news link with interested colleagues.
Contemporary History of Bioterrorism
End of daily news coverage: October 1, 2003
This
site provides educational information from the news media on possible biological weapons,
considered in an epidemiologic and public health context. Different from
biologic warfare which attempts to kill, bioterrorism thrives on public
fear, potentially immobilizing or demoralizing a population.
Countering
such fears are public knowledge and purposeful scientific and political action
(click
for more).
The site is maintained as a public service by Professor
Emeritus Ralph R. Frerichs of the UCLA Department of Epidemiology and is intended for
noncommercial use by students, health professionals and the general population.
DISEASE DETECTIVES
AMERICAN ANTHRAX OUTBREAK
OF 2001
During
September-November 2001, an outbreak of intentionally-spread anthrax in the
United States caused five deaths and a total of 22 infections (18 confirmed and 4 suspicious). Click
on the disease detective at left for details of the anthrax outbreak
investigation, including spore-laden letters, disease onset graphs, case
histories, and epidemiologic conclusions.
POTENTIAL MICROBIAL WEAPONS
The most likely biological weapons are the agents
that cause anthrax, smallpox, botulism, tularemia, and pneumonic plague. Click
here for a
summary table. Please note that Hemorrhagic Fever is not included in this
table.
PUBLIC HEALTH BIOTERRORISM PREPAREDNESS AND
RESPONSE
Los Angeles County (DHS)
California (DHS)
United States (CDC)
World Health Organization (WHO Outbreak News)
RELEVANT NEWS/COMMENTARY ARTICLES
Thoughtful writings in the news media on the public health threat or
epidemiological impact of biological weapons and related events.
Click
here for archives of earlier relevant articles
UC Davis reverses on biolab warnings (9/4/03)
UC Davis fails to win $59 million grant that would have helped fund bio lab (9/4/03)
Schools to develop bioterrorism vaccines (9/7/03)
New steps urged to curb biological weapons threat (9/9/03)
Hopkins' biodefense staff departing (9/17/03)
Bioterrorism poses new threat to US national security (9/18/03)
FDA head criticizes public health service plan (9/20/03)
Biosafety lab would imperil city of Davis, some contend (9/22/03)
The flu factor In bioterrorism (9/23/03)
F.B.I. names top scientists for advisory panel on germs (9/26/03)
Public health programs feared lost in new battle (9/28/03)
Boston, Texas win biodefense lab money (9/30/03)
CURRENT PUBLIC HEALTH AND CLINICAL DESCRIPTION
Anthrax
Control of Communicable Disease Manual (APHA), 2000.
World Health Organization Outbreak News
-Click for worldwide occurrence of anthrax since
1997
Click
here
for archives of earlier CDC items
Anthrax News Stories and Journal
Articles
Click
here for archives of earlier
news stories and articles
Hatfill ex-colleague gets FBI job (9/7/03)
Anthrax kills 10 cows in Tripp County (9/13/03)
The pursuit of Steven Hatfill (9/14/03)
Human Genome says it created Anthrax antibody (9/15/03)
The message in the Anthrax (posted 9/15/03)
Reporter interview on Steven Hatfill article (9/15/03)
Anthrax lab closes in on DNA marker (9/15/03)
VANITY FARCE? Hatfill lawyer rips mag's Anthrax article (9/15/03)
Anthrax survivors find life a struggle (9/18/03)
Anthrax victim's family sues U.S. government (9/25/03)
Developments in Anthrax scare of 2001 (9/27/03)
Security at issue in widow's case (9/29/03)
D.C. FBI chief regrets leaks and labels in Anthrax case (9/30/03)
FBI fails to re-create Anthrax production (9/30/03)
Smallpox
Control of Communicable Disease Manual (APHA), 2000.
World Health Organization Outbreak News
-Click for worldwide occurrence of smallpox
vaccine problems since 2000
Click
here
for archives of earlier CDC items
Smallpox News Stories and Journal
Articles
Click
here for archives of earlier
news stories and articles
With demand lacking, Smallpox vaccine expiring (8/23/03)
CDC seeks Smallpox shot rates (8/26/03)
Acambis completes Smallpox vaccine programme
(8/27/03)
Acambis swings to profit; CEO will resign position (9/16/03)
GMU, GW in patent, ethics dispute (9/17/03)
AP: no evidence Iraq stockpiled Smallpox (9/18/03)
Botulism
Control of Communicable Disease Manual (APHA), 2000.
Botulism News Stories and Journal
Articles
Botulinum Toxin as a Biological Weapon. JAMA 285(8), 2001.
Complications
feared if rush to Botox occurs (4/22/02)
Botulism vaccine created at
UCSF (8/5/02)
Tularemia
Control of Communicable Disease Manual (APHA), 2000.
World Health Organization Outbreak News
-Click for worldwide occurrence of tularemia
since 2000
Tularemia News Stories and Journal
Articles
Tularemia as a Biological Weapon. JAMA 285(21), 2001.
An outbreak of primary
pneumonic Tularemia on Martha's Vineyard. NEJM
345 (22): 2001 (11/29/01)
Tularemia revisited.
NEJM 345 (22): 2001
(11/29/01)
US warns doctors of possible biological war agent (3/7/02)
Tularemia -- United States, 1990-2000, MMWR 59(09): 2002 (3/8/02)
Case of Tularemia found in Madison County cat
(5/24/03)
UCI scientists join fight against terror (8/27/03)
Pneumonic Plague
Control of Communicable Disease Manual (APHA), 2000.
World Health Organization Outbreak News
-Click for worldwide occurrence of plague since
1997
Click
here
for archives of earlier professional items
Plague News Stories and Journal
Articles
Click
here for archives of earlier
news stories and articles
Tech professor pleads innocent in plague case (5/10/03)
Colleagues defend Tech professor accused in missing-plague case
(6/13/03)
Arizona plague's DNA is mapped
(7/2/03)
Algeria hit by plague outbreak (7/10/03)
Science groups protest researcher's treatment (8/28/03)
Charges against scientist widened (9/4/03)
Academy accuses US over prosecution of scientist (9/19/03)
Mr. Butler and the law (9/25/03)
EPILOGUE
Researcher Who Was Convicted
in Plague Case Is Sentenced to 2 Years in Jail
(3/19/04)
Hemorrhagic Fever
Control of Communicable Disease Manual (APHA), 2000.
World Health Organization Outbreak News
-Click for worldwide occurrence of Ebola since 1996
Hemorrhagic Fever
News Stories and Journal
Articles
Click
here for archives of earlier stories and articles
WHO: Ebola outbreak spreads to Gabon
(6/25/02)
Ebola outbreak 'may spread' in Congo
(2/11/03)
Death toll from suspected Ebola reaches 51 in Congo
(2/14/03)
Ebola outbreak confirmed in Congo
(2/18/03)
New Ebola outbreak reported in Congo
(2/26/03)
Ebola outbreak kills 100 in Congo (3/11/03)
Ebola death toll in Congo keeps climbing
(3/15/03)
Death toll from Congo's Ebola outbreak reaches 120
(4/9/03)
Scientists achieve unexpected success With Ebola vaccine
(8/7/03)
THE SVERDLOVSK ANTHRAX OUTBREAK OF 1979
In 1979, an outbreak of largely inhalation anthrax
occurred in Sverdlovsk, Russia in which 66 individuals were documented to
have died of anthrax and 11 infected persons were
known to have survived. Click
here
to read the scientific article.
THE NEW HAMPSHIRE ANTHRAX OUTBREAK OF 1957
The only American inhalation anthrax outbreak in the
twentieth century occurred in 1957 in a goat hair processing mill in
Manchester, New Hampshire.
Comprising the outbreak were five inhalation
(four fatal) and four cutaneous anthrax cases. Click
here for the
seminal scientific article on the epidemiological outbreak.
News media follow-up of
Anthrax outbreak of 1957 (10/27/01)
UCLA CENTER FOR PUBLIC HEALTH AND DISASTERS
The mission of the Center is to promote interdisciplinary efforts to reduce the health impacts
of domestic and international, natural and human-generated disasters. To view
its website, click
here.
LECTURES AND TUTORIALS
Supercourse:
Anthrax, Humberto Guerra, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Peru (mid
- 2000)
Tutorial:
Inhalation Anthrax,
US Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (October, 2001)
Tutorial:
Anthrax and Bioterrorism, US National Library of Medicine: (November,
2001)
Graph:
Anthrax
life cycle, Knight Ridder/Tribune (2001)
Video Tutorial: Bioterrorism, Washington Post
Anthrax (10/24/01)
Increased preparedness
(February, 2002)
Public health concerns (February, 2002) |