Anthrax outbreak in the Philippines
by Ted Purlain on June 2, 2010
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The Manilla Bulletin recently reported that 41 people are confirmed infected with anthrax in the Abra town of Villaviciosa.
There have been no deaths reported however since the outbreak, which has been tied to meat from two carabaos, Dr. Myrna Cabotaje, the director of the Center for Health Development in Cordillera, told The Manilla Bulletin.
Antibiotics were quickly given to residents in the area, health officials told the newspaper, and the spread of the disease most often associated with biological warfare was contained.
Most of the patients who were confirmed victims of the anthrax outbreak were men, according to a report from the National Epidermiology and Surveillence Center.
All of the infected had some form of skin lesions as a result of their exposure to anthrax.
Cabotaje told the Manilla Bulletin that the carabaos died of unknown causes and that all the patients treated said they had eaten meat from the butchered animals. Samples of the animals' hides were still being tested to confirm suspicions of the origin of the outbreak.
Prompt treatment can cure anthrax infections contacted through the skin or through ingesting contaminated meat. Inhaled anthrax is more difficult to treat and can be fatal to those who contract it.
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