Biological Weapons – Injuries and Poisoning

Distinguishing the use of a biological weapon from a natural outbreak of disease may be difficult for doctors. Clues to a deliberate rather than a natural origin of a disease outbreak include the following:

• Cases of diseases not usually seen in that geographic area

• Unusual distribution of cases among segments of the population

• Significantly different illness rates between those inside and those outside buildings

• Separate outbreaks in geographically diverse areas

• Multiple simultaneous or serial outbreaks of different diseases in the same population

• Unusual routes of exposure (such as inhalation)

• A disease that normally affects animals occurring in humans

• A disease that normally affects animals arising in an area where that animal species is not usually present

• Unusual severity of disease

• Unusual strains of infectious agents

• Failure to respond to standard therapy

The symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment of people with the following diseases caused by high-risk biological weapons are discussed elsewhere in The Manuals:

Doctors may need to isolate people exposed to a biological weapon and place under quarantine people known to have been in contact with an exposed person.