Virus Among the Navajo :: Native Americans Influenza Essays

virus Among the NavajoMedical investigators, such as myself, have not prone a great deal of attention to the medical traditions of indigenous groups in the past. alone the outcomes of the recent investigation that took place in The Four Corners world stand for our need to consider age-old notions right along with the bionomical news report of the neck of the woods in question. A hardly a(prenominal) months ago, the New Mexico surgical incision of wellness notified my department (Office of Medical Investigations) that three young and healthy adults from the Navajo province had died of a sudden respiratory illness. Their symptoms had been the similar fever, chills, muscle aches, nausea and vomiting, and abdominal muscle pain, followed by coughing and shortness of breath, then the abrupt onset of respiratory suffering which is usually fatal (KCPH). Our first inclination was to look at diseases that ar cognise to affect the Navajo specifically, such as bubonic plague, i nfluenza, and viral pneumonia. However, testing ground results indicated that these diseases had not caused the deaths, nor had toxic chemicals. Furthermore, the perplexing disease had begun to take the lives of non-Navajo commonwealth upkeep near the reservation (AMNH). By the end of May the clandestine deaths had attracted prodigious media attention. I remember seeing the headline Mystery disorder Kills 10 on Reservation in the Sun-Sentinel while I was conducting interviews there. Without intimacy of a potential cause, our department, and several different agencies, began an intense investigation. Samples of tissue from patients give with the rich disease were sent to the CDC Special Pathogens Branch for analysis. after a few weeks and several tests, the virologists linked the disease with an unknown type of hantavirus. Because other hantaviruses were known to be transmitted to state by inhalation or economic consumption of rodent feces or urine, our next task w as to lift up as many species of rodent in the area as possible in order to pinpoint the source of the virus (AMNH). While housing rodents, we unyielding that it was worth the risk to not wear protective garments or masks so as to avoid alarming residents of The Four Corners region (CDC). After testing approximately 1,700 rodents we had found a link--the prevalent cervid abstract carried the unknown type of hantavirus. But wherefore was this mouse all of a sudden infecting community in this region? I was becoming frustrated, my years of proceed in medicine were failing me and I couldnt figure out why these people kept getting sick.Virus Among the Navajo Native Americans Influenza EssaysVirus Among the NavajoMedical investigators, such as myself, have not given a great deal of attention to the medical traditions of indigenous groups in the past. But the outcomes of the recent investigation that took place in The Four Corners area exemplify our need to consider age-o ld notions right along with the ecological history of the region in question. A few months ago, the New Mexico Department of Health notified my department (Office of Medical Investigations) that three young and healthy adults from the Navajo Nation had died of a sudden respiratory illness. Their symptoms had been the similar fever, chills, muscle aches, nausea and vomiting, and abdominal pain, followed by coughing and shortness of breath, then the abrupt onset of respiratory distress which is usually fatal (KCPH). Our first inclination was to look at diseases that are known to affect the Navajo specifically, such as bubonic plague, influenza, and viral pneumonia. However, laboratory results indicated that these diseases had not caused the deaths, nor had toxic chemicals. Furthermore, the perplexing disease had begun to take the lives of non-Navajo people living near the reservation (AMNH). By the end of May the mysterious deaths had attracted significant media attention. I re member seeing the headline Mystery Illness Kills 10 on Reservation in the Sun-Sentinel while I was conducting interviews there. Without knowledge of a possible cause, our department, and several other agencies, began an intense investigation. Samples of tissue from patients infected with the mysterious disease were sent to the CDC Special Pathogens Branch for analysis. After a few weeks and several tests, the virologists linked the disease with an unknown type of hantavirus. Because other hantaviruses were known to be transmitted to people by inhalation or ingestion of rodent feces or urine, our next task was to collect as many species of rodent in the area as possible in order to pinpoint the source of the virus (AMNH). While trapping rodents, we decided that it was worth the risk to not wear protective clothing or masks so as to avoid alarming residents of The Four Corners region (CDC). After testing approximately 1,700 rodents we had found a link--the prevalent deer mouse ca rried the unknown type of hantavirus. But why was this mouse suddenly infecting people in this region? I was becoming frustrated, my years of work in medicine were failing me and I couldnt figure out why these people kept getting sick.