Mosquitos are not a vector as far as we know.  As Carpenter correctly pointed out, AI is not a blood borne disease.  We do test blood for antibodies to it, though.

There is always the remote possibility of the virus mutating into a form that can be carried in the blood.  I would think the odds of being hit by a meteor are greater.

There have been no reports of AI being spread by mosquitos.  This is probably because the virus travels on airborne vectors and is primarily a pulmonary disease.  Coughing releases it from the deep lobes of the lungs in those who are infected, and it then has to make it down into the lower lung in recipients.  It's just not efficient yet.  This is NOT a blood-borne pathogen.  The idea of mosquitos carrying bird feces dust on theie feet is also a non-starter, because there is no vector to get it into your lower lungs.

For handwashing info, check out the video page in the forum.  There's a great one from Australia.


Edited by carpenter - April 06 2006 at 2:18pm

 Right you are about most people not washing their hands in the bathroom! Disgusting. That is why I carry the little alcohol bottles of sanitizer in my car. After shaking hands with these folks, I use it right away!  BF or no BF we should all keep up our handwashing!

7Strong wrote: Thanks for the info Spirit.  I thought if it were possible we would have heard it before.

Given that West Nile virus is spread by the mosquito, I would not rule out H5N1 being transmitted eventually by the same vector.

Sorry, I don't seem to know how to make the original comment come up in my reply. I, also having trouble controlling my font size!

 

Endman said:

I always thought that ADIS can be transmitted via a mosquito bite.
Why not BF, but I think you need a special kind of mosquito the one that can transmit malaria .

Endman and 7 Strong, You can go to this link Titled:

Why Mosquitoes Cannot Transmit AIDS

by Wayne J. Crans, Associate Research Professor in Entomology

http://www.rci.rutgers.edu/~insects/aids.htm

Headings in the article include:

Mosquitoes Do Not Ingest Enough HIV Particles to Transmit AIDS by Contamination

Mosquitoes Are Not Flying Hypodermic Needles

Mosquitoes Digest the Virus that Causes AIDS

Perhaps the BF will behave similarly in mosquitoes.

 

.

I'm sure if it could be transmitted through mosquitos we would have heard more about it by now............  wouldn't we??  I think I read somewhere.....  maybe one of Joes posts......  about insect vectors.  Someone who knows ease our minds!   PLEASE!!!

Hi, One thing that is truly useful is bleach. If you never used bleach in your kitchen before, try using it now to sanitize dishes and tools used in food preparation. Bleach's effectiveness is multiplied by the addition of vinegar which lowers the pH of the hypochlorite and makes more chlorine available. A 250 ml wash bottle with 10 mls bleach and 30 mls vinegar and brought to volume with tap water is effective.

Has simple pictures in a pdf document

 

www.health.gov.on.ca/english/ public/pub/pubhealth/pdf/handwash_tech.pdf

seesthelight wrote: Thomas Angel wrote: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avian/outbreaks/current.htm Summary Influenza A (H5N1) is an influenza A virus subtype that occurs mainly in birds, is highly contagious among birds, and can be deadly to them. Outbreaks of H5N1 among poultry are ongoing in a number of countries. While H5N1 does not usually infect people, human cases of H5N1 infection associated with these outbreaks have been reported Most of these cases have occurred from direct or close contact with infected poultry or contaminated surfaces; however, a few rare cases of human-to-human spread of H5N1 virus have occurred, though transmission has not continued beyond one person. " however, a few rare cases of human to human spread of virus have occurred,..."   Nice to see them admit that publically.  That means it is happening.  Now.  Not a possiblity in some distant future time, but actually has happened and they are willing to admit it has happened.  .   This is old news to me..they have known about these"rare cases" or the other terminology used "unsustained cases" since 2005.  This is not new.

Well sure they did.  Anyone with half a brain did.  It was new in the respect that it was the first time that CDC admitted it openly when they posted it on their lil' homely website devoid of any pratical or useful information back on the date I pulled it off their site and posted it here that same day.

Terrible thought Tazman. I had not considered transmissions by Mosquito's.  I think they call that West Nile Virus. I wonder how they differ? Maybe the West Nile Virus is only contagious from a Mosquito M2H and not M2H2H? I'm not in that field, just don't know. Scary thought.