RESPONSE TO THE BIOLOGICAL WARFARE BW THREAT 20 AUG 90

File: 120396_sep96_decls54_0005.txt
Page: 0005
Total Pages: 16

Subject: RESPONSE TO THE BIOLOGICAL WARFARE BW THREAT 20 AUG 90          

Unit: OTSG        

Parent Organization: HSC         

Box ID: BX003201

Folder Title: OPERATION DESERT SHIELD RESPONSE TO THE BIOLOGICAL WARFARE BW THREAT                            

Document Number:          1

Folder SEQ  #:         45






          fungal infectious diseases. Progression over a period of 2 to 3 days with the
          sudden development of severe respiratory distress followed by shock and death
          in 24-36 hours in essentially all untreated cases eliminates virtually all
          diagnoses other than inhalation anthrax. The presence of a widened
          mediastinum on chest X-ray, in particular, should alert one to the diagnosis.
          Other suggestive findings include chest wall edema, hemorrhagic pleural
          effusions, and hemorrhagic meningitis. Other diagnoses to consider include
          aerosol exposure to staphylococcal enterotoxin B, but in this case, onset would
          be more rapid after exposure (if known), no prodrome would be evident prior
          to onset of severe respiratory symptoms, and gastrointestinal symptoms would
          be noted in many cases. Mediastinal widening on chest X-ray will also be
          absent. Patients with plague pneumonia would have pulmonary infiltrates and
          clinical signs of pneumonia (usually absent in anthrax).
                HI SPECIFIC LABORATORY DIAGNOSIS
                Bacillus anthracis will be readily detectable by blood culture with routine
          media. Smears and cultures of pleural fluid and cerebrospinal fluid should also
          be positive. Impression smears from mediastinal lymph nodes from fatal cases
          should be positive. Toxemia is sufficient to permit detection in blood by
          immunoassays, and such assays may be available in field-expedient form in the
          near future. None of these modalities (except possibly early toxin detection) is
          expected to yield a diagnosis in time to permit successful therapy.

                IV THERAPY
                Almost all cases of inhalation anthrax have been fatal regardless of
          treatment. Penicillin is the treatment of choice, with 2 million units given
          intravenously every 2 hours. Tetracycline and erythromycin can be given in
   penicillin-sensitive patients. In     data suggests that ciprofloxacin may be
                                                   5         BRA F- T,

Document 16 f:/Week-36/BX003201/OPERATION DESERT SHIELD RESPONSE TO THE BIOLOGICAL WARFARE BW THREAT/response to the biological warfare bw threat 20 :11229616342212
Control Fields 17
File Room = sep96_declassified
File Cabinet = Week-36
Box ID = BX003201
Unit = OTSG
Parent Organization = HSC
Folder Title = OPERATION DESERT SHIELD RESPONSE TO THE BIOLOGICAL WARFARE BW THREAT
Folder Seq # = 45
Subject = RESPONSE TO THE BIOLOGICAL WARFARE BW THREAT 20
Document Seq # = 1
Document Date =
Scan Date =
Queued for Declassification = 01-JAN-1980
Short Term Referral = 01-JAN-1980
Long Term Referral = 01-JAN-1980
Permanent Referral = 01-JAN-1980
Non-Health Related Document = 01-JAN-1980
Declassified = 22-NOV-1996