Anthrax
By: Skyler Williams
What causes anthrax
Anthrax is made from spores that occur naturally in most of the world. They mainly affect livestock, but you can become infected by three things. Eating infected meat, touching the disease with a cut, and by breathing in the spores. It is not contagious.
Organs affected.
Different forms of this disease can affect different things. The cutaneous form affects the skin, the respiratory affects the lungs, throat and blood and the digestive form affects the stomach and throat.
Symptoms
Cutaneous symptoms include a black sore, and swelling in and around the sore. The digestive form causes nausea, vomiting, fever, loss of appetite, sore throat, and swollen neck, and the respiratory cause's problems with your lungs and blood.
Locations
Anthrax is most common in agricultural regions and climates, such as Latin America, eastern and southern Europe, Africa, the Caribbean and Asia, but it can occur worldwide.
Transmission
Anthrax spores are made from bacterium and after being made they can survive for a decade before infecting an animal or person. It can infect you from touching it breathing in the spores or by working with or eating the before mentioned animal.
Prevention
You can prevent this disease with antibiotics or by avoiding livestock and areas where it is common and by being careful if you work with animals or their fur.
Vaccine
A vaccine has been created, but it is not for public use. Only if you work in the military where it is common or work in a lab with it.
Cures
The cures include antibiotics :), removing infected tissue :(, and the before mentioned vaccine :).
Elimination
This disease can't be eliminated. The spores that cause it grow around the world and they can survive for a decade in extreme weather. So it would be impossible to know whether or not it was gone.
Bioterrorism
This disease is considered to be the most likely choice for a bioterrorism attack. It was first used as a weapon in 1900. It is a tier 1 disease threat because it could cause lots of deaths and has a high chance of being misused. The cutaneous and respiratory forms can be sent by mail. If there was an attack monitors and doctors would know from either high amounts of it or lots of cases.
History
It is believed that anthrax was the fifth of the ten plagues of Egypt. Anthrax was also used in world war one. First human vaccine made in 1950.
Statistics
There is a 20% chance of death if you get the cutaneous form, and a 25% to 60% chance of death if you get the digestive form, lastly there is a 90% chance of death if you get the respiratory form.
Bibliography
"ANTHRAX." Illinois Department of Public Health. Web. 5 Dec. 2014.
Anthrax. Photograph. Encyclopædia Britannica. Web. 16 Dec. 2014. <http://school.eb.com/levels/high/article/7792/media?assemblyId=154176>.
Bacillus Anthracis. Photograph. Encyclopædia Britannica. Web. 16 Dec. 2014. <http://school.eb.com/levels/high/article/309872/media?assemblyId=136332>.
"Bioterrorism." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 29 Aug. 2013. Web. 5 Dec. 2014.
"A History of Anthrax." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 05 Nov. 2013. Web. 8 Dec. 2014.
Http://school.eb.com/levels/middle/search/articles?query=anthrax&includeLevelTwo=false
Mayo Clinic. Mayo Clinic. Web. 2 Dec. 2014.