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My Husband Became a Poster Child of the Post-Antibiotic Era

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Re: My Husband Became a Poster Child of the Post-Antibiotic Era

#31

Post by ImprovedSilence »

gumby wrote: post #15

One factor that will return once people start to panic is table manners, many of which seem fussy (separate saving utensils, a butter knife, not putting used utensils onto the table) but actually evolved for hygiene reasons. Sadly of course like any complex behavior it was also hijacked for sumptuary purposes (grape shears, egg spoons, not finishing your plate in some cultures) but I hold out a hope (probably in vail…

Having silverware actually made out of silver existed for sanitary reasons as well. Same reason to throw a silver dollar in your well.

Re: My Husband Became a Poster Child of the Post-Antibiotic Era

#32

Post by BurningFrog »

spraak wrote: post #29
phkahler wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> some types of vaccines are creating evolutionary pressure... Wouldn't it be nice if we had more eradication programs? Evolution is going to work around every vaccine eventually unless we eradicate the disease. Yes, this is a hard problem but I think long term its worth it. Eventually we might get good at it.

I don't believe that eradication is possible, but I'm curious to hear more what your thoughts are

Any disease that only affects humans can be eradicated with a universal vaccine.

If it lives on in other species, it's a much harder problem.

Re: My Husband Became a Poster Child of the Post-Antibiotic Era

#34

Post by jen729w »

gumby wrote: post #15

One factor that will return once people start to panic is table manners, many of which seem fussy (separate saving utensils, a butter knife, not putting used utensils onto the table) but actually evolved for hygiene reasons. Sadly of course like any complex behavior it was also hijacked for sumptuary purposes (grape shears, egg spoons, not finishing your plate in some cultures) but I hold out a hope (probably in vail…

In Lionel Shriver’s wonderful ‘The Mandibles’ [0], set in the near-future, human contact has become a no-no for this reason. To touch is to spread germs, which are by now potentially deadly.

Great book if you’re in to near-future dystopia.

[0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mandibles

Re: My Husband Became a Poster Child of the Post-Antibiotic Era

#36

Post by est31 »

wl wrote: post #8
est31 wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For operations, sterilizations are carried out with a mixture of means like chemical disinfectants, subjecting instruments to extreme heat (Autoclaving), etc. but they don't rely on antibiotics. Instruments can be put into environments toxic to both human and bacterial cells. The big difference of antibiotics is that they are toxic to bacteria but not to human cells so they can be put directly into the system. Some b…

It's defense in depth. Yes, sterile technique is used to minimize the occurrence of surgical site infections. Sterile technique, when performed 100% correctly, isn't perfect and prophylactic antibiotics are standard to help mitigate any remaining risk.

Oh, TIL. Thanks for the info! It won't throw us back to the pre-semmelweis era though only to the pre-fleming area.

Re: My Husband Became a Poster Child of the Post-Antibiotic Era

#37

Post by emmelaich »

jen729w wrote: post #34
gumby wrote: post #15

One factor that will return once people start to panic is table manners, many of which seem fussy (separate saving utensils, a butter knife, not putting used utensils onto the table) but actually evolved for hygiene reasons. Sadly of course like any complex behavior it was also hijacked for sumptuary purposes (grape shears, egg spoons, not finishing your plate in some cultures) but I hold out a hope (probably in vail…

In Lionel Shriver’s wonderful ‘The Mandibles’ [0], set in the near-future, human contact has become a no-no for this reason. To touch is to spread germs, which are by now potentially deadly. Great book if you’re in to near-future dystopia. [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mandibles

Will check it out! Sort of related in the no human contact sense is Asimov's The Naked Sun and (of course) E.M.Forster's The Machine Stops.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Sun https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Machine_Stops

Re: My Husband Became a Poster Child of the Post-Antibiotic Era

#39

Post by Simon_says »

gumby wrote: post #15

One factor that will return once people start to panic is table manners, many of which seem fussy (separate saving utensils, a butter knife, not putting used utensils onto the table) but actually evolved for hygiene reasons. Sadly of course like any complex behavior it was also hijacked for sumptuary purposes (grape shears, egg spoons, not finishing your plate in some cultures) but I hold out a hope (probably in vail…

I would settle for people not coughing an sneezing into their hands and then immediately touching everything in their vicinity. I see everyone around me doing this and it disgusts me.

(For the record, a better way to handle it is to sneeze into the inside of your elbow or immediately wash your hands after.)

Re: My Husband Became a Poster Child of the Post-Antibiotic Era

#40

Post by fzeroracer »

spraak wrote: post #29
phkahler wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> some types of vaccines are creating evolutionary pressure... Wouldn't it be nice if we had more eradication programs? Evolution is going to work around every vaccine eventually unless we eradicate the disease. Yes, this is a hard problem but I think long term its worth it. Eventually we might get good at it.

I don't believe that eradication is possible, but I'm curious to hear more what your thoughts are

Eradication is absolutely possible. High enough vaccination rates would help prevent further evolution of viruses, eventually containing them and then removing them provided there aren't alternative vectors like animals or pets.

Unfortunately, certain other efforts are compromising this.

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