The
medical equipment needed for treatment of
biological patients depends on the
specific agent. Unlike a typical mass
casualty situation, few biological agent
patients will require surgery. Biological
toxins, where dramatic, acute signs such
as respiratory paralysis necessitate
various types of advanced equipment (for
instance, mechanical ventilators).
If the
biological agent causes an illness that
results in relatively few deaths (e.g.
Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE), or
Q fever), medical care can be effectively
provided on the local level. If the
disease is one for which specific therapy
such as antibiotics is indicated (e.g.
tularemia), instructions for obtaining
and administering the drugs should be
disseminated. For diseases with high
mortality and no specific therapy (e.g.
yellow fever), instructions for general
supportive care that might be provided by
non-medical personnel should be
disseminated.
Although
many individuals becoming ill from an
attack with a biological weapon would
likely undergo medical evaluation over a
short time span, all would not become
patients simultaneously, as thy would for
example, following saturation bombing or
a massive surprise attack with nerve gas.
An exception to this pattern might be
seen following an attack with a
biological toxin. Those who have been
infected by a biological agent other than
a toxin could remain functional for a
period of time after the attack (during
the incubation period).
It may be
necessary for one physician, with a small
number of ancillary personnel, to care
for several hundred patients. Information
could be disseminated about the normal
course of the disease, the specific signs
or symptoms of adverse prognostic
significance, the situations requiring
individual medial attention or advice,
and the procedures for obtaining
essential medial supplies.
An
essential aspect of medical management in
such a situation would be to allay panic.
This could be done effectively only if
everyone in the area could be assured
that the cause of the illness is known,
the course of the disease could be
described with reasonable accuracy, and
the outcome could be predicted.
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Medical
Management of Biological Agent Patients