Bioterrorism is the use of biological or chemical organisms to cause harm to the public health of people. Many countries have experienced a break out of certain diseases such as Ebola and have caused great threats to spread to other nations. The use of biological weapons is always preferred because it has the highest number of casualties. It always disrupts order, causing fear and panic (Leggiadro, 2000).
There are government initiatives that have been put in place to control such problems. The federal legislation in 1991 came up with the chemical and biological weapons control act. It directs the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to come up with agents that may be harmful to public health. In 1996, the Defense against weapons and mass destruction and the Antiterrorism and effective death penalty act were passed. In 2000 the CDC came up with the Biological and Chemical Terrorism strategic plan for preparedness and response. The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) and CDC have been working together to ensure that they monitor such weapons and diseases to avoid it spreading and being prepared in case of an outbreak (Leggiadro, 2000).
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Some biological agents are well known by the CDC. Anthrax is one of them in that it is a spore forming disease caused by Bacillus anthracis. It can be revealed through the gastrointestinal, cutaneous and pulmonary. Each has different symptoms. There is also the Botulism disease that is caused by Clostridium botulinum which produces a neurotoxin. The symptoms are blurred vision, weak jaws, and respiratory paralysis. It is spread through toxin ingestion in contaminated food. Plague is another disease that is caused by Yersinia pestis leading to lymphatic or pulmonary infections. The symptoms include fever, chest pain, and watery sputum. It is spread through aerosol dispersion (Leggiadro, 2000).
There are situations where the outbreak occurs. The first is a hoax where someone may receive a letter from someone with powder substances claiming you have been exposed to anthrax. It is advisable that 911 is called for the authorities to take proper measures and investigation. There is the massive attack where people start fainting due to an outbreak. With no time the authorities will be on the case trying to control the symptoms or helping with the cure.
Lastly is the small or covert attack where the spread of the disease is slow and local hospitals may not have realized its seriousness. Most hospitals are now trained on preparedness and therefore know what to be on the lookout for (Leggiadro, 2000). It is, therefore, advisable that other countries copy the same preparation to prevent the spread of outbreaks. Prevention is always better than cure.
Reference
Leggiadro RJ. (2000). The threat of biological terrorism: a public health and infection control reality. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol . 21:53–56. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=Leggiadro%20RJ.%20(2000).%20The%20threat%20of%20biological%20terrorism:%20a%20public%20health%20and%20infection%20control%20reality.%20Infect%20Control%20Hosp%20Epidemiol.%2021:53%E2%80%9356.
