HIV, MERS, Ebola, and Zika are all diseases that are spread from animals to humans in a process known as spillover, which has the potential in our era of international travel to explode into a deadly global pandemic. Filmmaker James Barrat's PBS-aired documentary examines the urgent efforts to track and contain these emerging diseases. Ebola, first diagnosed in 1976, kills about 90 percent of those it infects, often leaving the few survivors with damage to their sight and hearing (Ebola can be transmitted even after a patient dies). Crowded urban centers, like those found in West Africa, can be natural powder kegs for the spread of Ebola, which may have been introduced to humans when "patient zero" possibly ate an infected animal, most likely a bat, after which the disease quickly progressed through those caring for afflicted patients—claiming doctors, nurses, and family members. Zika, which probably originated in Africa and has hit people hard in Brazil, causes microcephaly, which damages developing fetal brains. The disease is spread by mosquito bites, and the mosquito can breed in something as small as a water-filled bottle cap. Once infected, patients can spread Zika through sexual contact and blood transfusions. The documentary looks at efforts to contain outbreaks, including a process known as contact tracing, in which researchers try to identify everyone who has had contact with patients, with the goal of cutting the chain before the epidemic spirals out of control. The possibility is raised here of genetically modifying the Zika-spreading mosquitoes, but the larger picture is that viruses do not respect borders and we must anticipate and be prepared for these fast-moving outbreaks. Sounding a healthy note of caution, this informative documentary is recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (S. Rees)
Spillover: Zika, Ebola & Beyond
(2016) 60 min. DVD: $24.99 ($54.99 w/PPR). PBS Video. ISBN: 978-1-62789-856-0. Volume 32, Issue 2
Spillover: Zika, Ebola & Beyond
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