New ebola case rate based on a new model, an ebola recap, and EEE in New Hampshire.

The Ebola epidemic affecting West Africa is predicted to last a further 12 to 18 months, according to U.S. scientists. Things are looking ungood. Sorry about the source. If you cannot be bothered to proofread your headline, that leaves much else suspect. I will look for confirmation form other sources. Here is the source where much of the new data was mined. 20k cases per month? I didn't know that Thomas Geisbert was considered an ebola expert. He used to be an electron microscopist at USAMRIID.

I saved all the NYT stuff locally. I am a paid subscriber, so let us hope that I do not get fined--or worse--for having a full local copy of the piece for reference.

That's the ebola recap.

New Hampshire now has two confirmed cases of human EEE.

The news comes just three days after health officials confirmed the second human case of EEE in New Hampshire; that person lives in Hopkinton. An adult in Conway also tested positive for EEE last month.

The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services has also confirmed EEE infection in six mosquito batches and a mule this season. So far, there has been no indication of the West Nile virus in New Hampshire.

Infected mosquitoes can transmit EEE to humans through bites. The species testing positive in Portsmouth primarily feeds on birds, but will occasionally bite humans.

EEE can create symptoms including fever, headache, stiff neck and sore throat. Severe cases can cause significant brain damage or death. There is no human vaccine or cure for EEE, making the rare but dangerous disease difficult to treat, but there are ways to prevent bites from infected mosquitoes.

It is likely that there are many many more mosquitoes in NH that are carrying the virus. It is troubling that this being a state where outdoor activities are the rule that permethrin is not the go to agent to repel most insects and those small evil arachnids we call ticks. I had 40% DEET applied to my brush boots minutes(say 5) before a tick ambled right across the toe of my boot. Since I started using permethrin as my personal "bug" repellent, I have had no issues with ticks, mosquitoes, or anything else. I do not apply it to my skin. My outdoor gear gets dosed and allowed to dry before use. Permethrin lasts through a couple of washings, and for at least six weeks in tick central.