A biologic threat is an infectious disease with the potential to spread and cause an outbreak. Infectious diseases are illnesses caused by germs (such as bacteria and viruses).
How are biological agents categorized?
Biological Agents are classified in the Code of Practice to the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Biological Agents) Regulations 2013 and 2020, into four risk groups – groups 1, 2, 3 and 4. The classification system is based on whether: The agent is pathogenic to humans. The agent is a hazard to employees.
What are the 3 categories of biological agents?
Biological agents include bacteria, viruses, fungi, other microorganisms and their associated toxins.
What are the 6 category A biological agents?
- Anthrax (Bacillus anthracis)
- Botulism (Clostridium botulinum toxin)
- Plague (Yersinia pestis)
- Smallpox (variola major)
- Tularemia (Francisella tularensis)
- Viral hemorrhagic fevers (filoviruses [e.g., Ebola, Marburg] and arenaviruses [e.g., Lassa, Machupo])
What are the 4 hazard groups for biological agents?
Pathogens, Toxins, Allergens and Carcinogens Pathogens are microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites which can colonise humans and cause infection and harm to health.
What are examples of biological weapons?
Historical biological weapons programmes have included efforts to produce: aflatoxin; anthrax; botulinum toxin; foot-and-mouth disease; glanders; plague; Q fever; rice blast; ricin; Rocky Mountain spotted fever; smallpox; and tularaemia, among others.
What are the criteria used in the CDC classification of bioterrorism agents?
The US CDC biological agents biodefense evaluation criteria include: (1) can be easily disseminated or transmitted from person to person; (2) result in high mortality rates and have the potential for major public health impacts; (3) might cause public panic and social disruption; (4) require special action for public …
What are the two classifications of biological hazards?
Generally, these refer to plants, soil, or water that potentially contain the first two types of biological hazards—biological agents and biotoxins.
What is a Level 4 biohazard?
Biohazard Level 4 usually includes dangerous viruses like Ebola, Marburg virus, Lassa fever, Bolivian hemorrhagic fever, and many other hemorrhagic viruses found in the tropics.
Which of the following is classified as a Category A biological threat agent?
Included among them are the Category A agents – anthrax, dengue, Ebola, smallpox, and tularemia – as well as Category B and C agents such as chikungunya, influenza, and Zika.
What is considered a Category A pathogen?
Category A Infectious Substances are infectious substances in a form that, when exposure to it occurs, is capable of causing permanent disability, life-threatening or fatal disease in otherwise healthy humans or animals.
How many categories of biological agents are there?
There are more than 1200 different kinds of biological agents, some of which can be used as biological weapons. The United States Center for Disease Control (CDC) has divided the agents which can be used as biological weapons into three categories, Category A, B, and C.
Are category A biological agents easily transmitted person to person?
Biological Agent Categories Can be easily disseminated or transmitted from person to person; Result in high mortality rates and have the potential for major public health impact; Might cause public panic and social disruption; and. Require special action for public health preparedness.
What are the 6 biological hazards?
- Human blood and blood products. This includes items that have been affected by blood and other body fluids or tissues that contain visible blood.
- Animal waste.
- Human body fluids.
- Microbiological wastes.
- Pathological waste.
- Sharps waste.
What are the 6 hazard groups?
- 1) Safety hazards.
- 2) Biological hazards.
- 3) Physical hazards.
- 4) Ergonomic hazards.
- 5) Chemical hazards.
- 6) Workload hazards.
Who determines the biosafety level of an agent?
In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have specified these levels. The levels (BSL-1,2,3 and 4) are designated in ascending order, by degree of protection provided to personnel, the environment, and the community.
What are the four types of biological weapons?
- anthrax.
- botulism.
- plague.
- tularemia.
- smallpox.
- viral hemorrhagic fevers.
When was the last time biological weapons were used?
The last known incident of using plague corpses for biological warfare may have occurred in 1710, when Russian forces attacked Swedish troops by flinging plague-infected corpses over the city walls of Reval (Tallinn) (although this is disputed).
Does the US have biological weapons?
End of the program (1969–1973) President Richard M. Nixon issued his “Statement on Chemical and Biological Defense Policies and Programs” on November 25, 1969 in a speech from Fort Detrick. The statement officially ended all U.S. offensive biological weapons programs.
How do you identify bioterrorism?
- An unusual age distribution for common diseases. An increase in what appears to be a chickenpox-like illness among Adult patients, but which might be smallpox.
- A large number of cases of acute flaccid paralysis with prominent bulbar palsies, suggestive of a release of botulinum toxin.
What are indicators that a biological incident may have occurred?
Biological incidents (indicators) Unusual number of sick and dying – Casualties may occur minutes to hours to days or weeks after an incident has occurred. The time required before symptoms are observed is dependent on the agent used. Unscheduled and unusual spray – Especially outdoors during periods of darkness.
What are the 6 characteristics of the ideal microorganism to use for bioterrorism?
- inexpensive and readily available.
- spread through the air.
- survives sunlight, drying, heat.
- causes death of severe disability.
- easily transmitted.
- no treatment.
What are the 5 example of biological hazard?
Sources of biological hazards may include bacteria, viruses, insects, plants, birds, animals, and humans. These sources can cause a variety of health effects ranging from skin irritation and allergies to infections (e.g., tuberculosis, AIDS), cancer and so on.
What are the 3 biological hazards?
The main biological hazards of concern in food safety are pathogenic bacteria, viruses, and parasites.
What is biological substance category A?
Category A: an infectious substance which is carried in a form that, when exposure to it occurs, is capable of causing permanent disability, life threatening or fatal disease in otherwise healthy humans or animals.