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Show ettfiettiaBMSiaeefieieBeai WTarar Animal disease now feared by Capt. Abdollah Moghaddam Public Health OIC as terrorist biological weapon Commonly as ed questions the air. Under expected battlefield conditions, experts believe enough anthrax spores can be inhaled to kill someone Is anthrax vaccine safe? What are the side effects? Once a controlled livestock disease, in one deep breath. Inhalational Anthrax anthrax is now known as a biological symptoms including fever, coughweapon that is maintained by several, ing and weakness can begin as soon as 24 hours after breathing the spores. countries, including some of our potential adversaries. These ultimately lead to breathing Easy to produce and weaponize, anthrax is thought to be a weapon of choice for domestic and international terrorists. Although there hasnt been any reported anthrax release or exposure in the United States, the false anthrax threats are reaching epidemic proportions. Its estimated that an amount equivalent to a cup of anthrax, when delivered in an arousal form, is sufficient to kill 250,000 unprotected people. The only known protection against this deadly bacterium is a Food and vacDrug Administration-approve- d cine thats been used since 1970. Because anthrax is so lethal and its use against U.S. forces is very probable, the Department of Defense has required vaccinations for all U.S. military personnel. What is, anthrax? Why are we getting this vaccine? Anthrax is a lethal biological weapon. Vaccina- problems, shock and death. Why vaccinate? tion before exposure is a critical part of protection against this weapon. logical weapons like anthrax. As Am I required to take the vaccine? Yes, this vaccine, like every other required vaccination, is necessary to prepare you for deployment. Medical exemptions can be granted, if and Coast Guard personnel are given appropriate. Vaccines help protect against bio- part of Force Health Protection, DoD additional vaccines to provide maxi- . How many shots will I have to take? Six shots three given two weeks apart, plus three additional injections given six, 12 and 18 months later. An annual booster dose is required mum protection against naturally occur-rin- g diseases encountered when deploying overseas, such as typhoid, to maintain ongoing immunity. hepatitis A and yellow fever. The Is this an experimental vaccine? Department of Defense has established No, the anthrax vaccine has been FDA licensed a vaccination program to protect DoD since 1970. and Coast Guard personnel against anthrax. Is this vaccine safe? Anthrax vaccine is a sterile prodYes, this vaccine has been safely administered in U.S. since 1970. However, as with other vacthe uct made from a strain, or type, of the minor reactions are common. These numcines, anthrax organism that doesnt cause bers are well below the reported side effects for disease. The vaccine contains no livother vaccines such as hepatitis A, typhoid, pneuing or dead anthrax organisms. Vac- - J mococcal and Lyme disease. cination produces antibodies that neutralize the disease-causin- g protein Anthrax is a disease caused by the common to every strain of anthrax. bacteria Bacillus anthracis normally The anthrax vaccine isnt new. Human animals anthrax vaccines were developed in associated with plant-eatin- g to cattle and, a lesser England and the United States in the sheep, goats, Once common where 1950s and early 1960s. degree, swine. The anthrax vaccine now given to livestock were raised, it is now controlled through animal vaccination the military was licensed in 1970 by programs. Anthrax still occurs in coun- the Food and Drug Administration and tries where animals arent vaccinated, is manufactured by BioPort Corporation, Lansing, Mich., under License mainly Africa and Asia. Human infection usually results from No. 1290. It has been safely and roudirect contact with infected animals tinely administered in the United States or animal products such as wool, meat to k veterinarians, laboratory or hides. Anthrax is used as a bio- workers and livestock handlers since ' logical weapon because it is highly 1970. More details about anthrax vaccine lethal, easy to produce in large quantities and can easily be spread over a immunizations are available on the large area. When anthrax is used as Internet at www.anthrax.osd.mil; by or a biological weapon, people become calling toll free infected with Inhalational Anthrax by at the base Public Health office at Ext. breathing bacteria spores released in at-ris- . TRICARE The following answers are provided for these and other commonly asked questions. For more information, contact Public Health at Ext 54514. What are the side effects? Like all vaccines, anthrax vaccine may cause sore- ness, redness, itching and swelling at the injection site, but these reactions usually last only a few days. A lump at the site occurs commonly, usually last- ing for a few weeks, before going away on its own, if left alone. Beyond the injection site, from 5 percent will notice muscle aches, joint aches, e fever, headaches, malaise, rashes, chills, nausea or related symptoms. These symptoms usually go away in less than a week. Serious events, such as those requiring hospitalization, are rare for any vaccine usually once per 50,000 doses. Severe allergic reactions occur less than once per 100,000 doses. low-grad- side effects? What about long-terAt Fort Detrick, Md., 1,500 laboratory workers have been followed annually for 10 to 20 years or more after anthrax vaccination. None developed - unexplained symptoms due to repeated doses of this or other vaccines they received. From this and m . other monitoring, no patterns of delayed side effects to anthrax vaccine have been found. What if feeding? I am pregnant or breast . Anthrax vaccine, like other non-livin-g vaccines, is not expected to cause fetal harm. No evidence exists to indicate adverse reproductive effects occur after vaccination, including infertility. Prudent medical practice is to defer vaccination during pregnancy unless clearly needed. Therefore, pregnant women should not receive the anthrax vaccine, unless anthrax exposure occurs or is imminent Once pregnancy is confirmed, anthrax vaccinations will be deferred until after childbirth. The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention reports that vaccines are safe for nursing mothers and their children. What if Im planning on having children? The vaccine contains no infectious substance and there is no reason to delay childbearing. This applies to both men and women who are vaccinated. Since deployed Gulf War personnel received the anthrax vaccine, has it been linked to illnesses among Gulf War veterans? No, several renowned scientific groups, including the National Academy ofSciences, have addressed d this issue and found no evidence to link the anthrax vaccine with illnesses among Gulf War veterans. FDA-license- What other medical conditions should I tell the medical staff about? If you have an active illness, a chronic illness under medical treatment, or are taking a pre- scription medication, inform the medical staff before taking any vaccine. If I think Im having a vaccination-relateproblem, what should I do? d health Seek medical care as appropriate. At a minimum, any adverse event that results in 24 hours or more time lost from duty, or hospitalization, must be reported by the health-car- e provider using the Health and Human Services Vaccine Adverse Events d Reporting System. Anyone may report a adverse event of any severity or any length of time through VAERS to the FDA To obtain blank forms, go to wwwanthraxosdmilvaersvaers.htm A health-car- e or contact the FDA at provider can help you fill out the form. vaccine-associate- Im a Reservist Guard member. If I have Adverse reactions to directed vaccinations are line of duty illnesses. An affected Reserve Component member may go to any military treatment facility for initial treatment and evaluation during a duty period. Once treated, or the condition is stabilized, a Line of Duty or Notice of Eligibility status will be determined by the members unit. No additional treatment is authorized until the Service connection is validated. Evaluation doesnt require being in a duty status or DEERS enrollment. For more information, contact a unit representative. introduces Central Region, Central Source TRICARE beneficiaries in the TRICARE Central Region now have access to a consolidated Regional Internet site, called Central Region, Central Source, thanks to a partnering initiative between the TRICARE Central Region Lead Agent Office and TriWest Healthcare Alliance. The objective of the partnering initiative is to develop and implement Internet strategies that enhance the TRICARE program and better serve the needs of beneficiaries, providers, military treatment facilities, the Lead Agency and TriWest, said Col. Ted McNitt, Central Region Lead Agent. The Central Region includes Utah, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Minnesota. The Lead Agency and TriWest Internet teams have built an integrated website that offers all TRICARE Central Region constituencies comprehensive TRICARE and health care related information, while allowing both organizations to continue to manage their own content. Our overarching goal is to allow access to comprehensive health care information quickly and efficiently at one central source and to offer enhanced function ality to ease the administrative burdens of participating in a health care plan for beneficiaries and consumers alike, said Dave McIntyre, president and chief executive officer of TriWest Healthcare Alliance. In p shopessence, we have been able to make real-- , a customers and collective individual our ping for one-sto- ity. When the visitor accesses the site via www.region8.tri-care.osd.mor www.triwest.com, a common home page displays that link to the Lead Agent Office, TriWest and the TRICARE Program. The visitor will then be provided with a wide range of information and services that are available. From this consolidated site, three new features are being rolled out: Your TRICARE Benefits, Online Enrollment and Health Care InformationWebMD. Your TRICARE Benefits provides the visitor with a personalized table of benefits. After the beneficiary completes a brief profile online, a table of benefits is displayed. This online feature helps beneficiaries make an informed decision about which TRICARE benefit package best suits their needs. Online Enrollment gives active duty family members the ability to complete and submit a TRI CARE il TRI-CA- , a reaction to the vaccine, can I go to a military hospital or clinic? Prime enrollment form to TriWest in a matter of minutes. There is also an online enrollment form service for TRICARE Prime Remote-eligibl- e their who can determine eligibility and members, enroll quickly. Regarding the third feature, Health Care InformationWebMD, McIntyre says, We are always striving for ways to assist TRI CARE Central Region constituencies in accessing the latest health information. In order to provide beneficiaries and health care providers alike with the most leave to our without website, information, having a into TriWest has entered strategic relationship with HealtheonWebMD to provide this service. We were looking for the most comprehensive portal on the web, and the logical choice is HealtheonWebMD. TRI CARE is a regionally managed health care program for active duty and retired members of the uniformed services, their families, and survivors. TRI CARE brings together the health care resources of the Army, Navy and Air Force and supplements them with networks of civilian health care up-to-da- te |