Tularemia: Facts & Information, Tularemia: Facts & Information Kits, Tularemia: Facts & Information Products

	Survival /Protection /Environmental

	Cookers / Heaters / Stoves / Grills

	Home Storage / Pantry Supplies

	Safety Gear / Personal Protection

	Books / Videos / Survival Cards

	Showers / Toilets / Sanitation

	Security / Self Defense Products

	Solar Chargers / Solar Cooking

	Water Storage / Rations / Filters

	Health / Wellness / Personal Care

	Lights / Lanterns / Candles / LED

	Radios / NOAA Alerts / Receivers

	Emergency Kits \| Furniture Straps

	Camping /Hiking /Boating /Rescue

	Food Supply / Survival Rations

	First Aid Kits / Medical Supplies

	Military / Police / Tactical / Spy

	Surveillance Inspection Mirrors

	Travel Comfort / Safety / Security

	Megaphones / Air Horns / Signals

	A-Z Directory

	About Us

	Link Exchange

	Affiliate Program

Click here to visit the Virtual Customer Service.

Pandemic Supplies
N95 Masks, Bird Flu Kits
Family, Business & Gov't Supplies
Essential Viral Defense

Portable Toilets & Showers
We Prepare Families & Businesses
Huge Selection, Quick Shipping
Sanitation Supplies

Disaster Preparedness Kits
Family, Business & Gov't Supplies
Earthquakes, Hurricanes, Pandemic
Prepare Today!

Mountain House Meals
Camping Meals, #10 Food Cans
MREs, Mountain House Pouch Meals
Food Supply

Mountain House #10 Cans
Freeze Dried Meals - MRE Meals
Disaster Ready Meals - Best Prices!
Largest Selection

Prepare To Survive!
First Aid & Medical Kits
Pandemic Supplies - Low Prices!
Essential Medical Supplies

First Aid & Medical Kits
Home, Office, Outdoors, Auto Kits
First Aid Supplies - Low Prices!
Medical Supplies

Emergency Supplies
Water Storage, Freeze Dried Food
Bird Flu Kits - Medical Supplies
Get Ready!

Plan, Prepare...Survive!

The Choice is Yours

We Stock the Industry's Largest Selection

Serving Your Needs!

Unlike many other online stores, we stock what we sell. That means faster delivery!

You get thousands of products to choose from and all in stock.

Most orders are shipped within 24 hours or less.

Thank you in advance for your order and for allowing us to serve you!

Attention: Government Agencies, Law Enforcement, Military, & Public Safety Officials

On this site you'll find a variety of emergency preparedness products, services and information that is tailored specifically for small Businesses up to large scale Corporations & Government organizations. Our team of preparedness experts are here to assist you in your needs to better prepare your Organization before disaster strikes!

Emergency Preparedness Survival & First Aid Products & Supplies

Emergency Kits | Furniture Straps

Disaster Preparedness Guides

Tularemia: Facts & Information

Francisella tularensis, the organism that causes tularemia, is one of the most infectious pathogenic bacteria known, requiring inoculation or inhalation of as few as 10 organisms to cause disease. It is considered to be a dangerous potential biological weapon because of its extreme infectivity, ease of dissemination, and substantial capacity to cause illness and death.

During World War II, the potential of F. tularensis as a biological weapon, was studied by the Japanese as well as by the US and its allies.

Tularemia was one of several biological weapons that were stockpiled by the US military in the late 1960's, all of which were destroyed by 1973. The Soviet Union continued weapons production of antibiotic and vaccine resistant strains into the early 1990s.

Francisella tularensis is a hardy non-spore forming organism that is capable of surviving for weeks at low temperatures in water, moist soil, hay, straw or decaying animal carcasses.

F. tularensis has been divided into two subspecies: F. tularensis biovar tularensis (type A), which is the most common biovar isolated in North America and may be highly virulent in humans and animals; F. tularensis biovar palaearctica (type B) which is relatively avirulent and thought to the cause of all human tularemia in Europe and Asia.

Tularemia is a zoonosis. Natural reservoirs include small mammals such as voles, mice, water rats, squirrels, rabbits and hares. Naturally acquired human infection occurs through a variety of mechanisms such as: bites of infected arthropods; handling infectious animal tissues or fluids; direct contact or ingestion of contaminated water, food, or soil; and inhalation of infective aerosols. F. tularensis is so infective that examining an open culture plate can cause infection.

Human to human transmission has not been documented.

In the natural setting, tularemia is noted to be a predominately rural disease with clinical presentations including ulceroglandular, glandular, oculoglandular, oropharyngeal, pneumonic, typhoidal and septic forms.

The Working Group on Civilian Biodefense believes that of the various possible ways that F. tularensis could be used as a weapon, an aerosol release would cause the greatest adverse medical and public health consequences.

A World Health Organization (WHO) expert committee reported in 1970 that if 50 kg of virulent F. tularensis was dispersed as an aerosol over a metropolitan area with a population of 5 million there would an estimated 250,000 incapacitating casualties, including 19,000 deaths.

Aerosol dissemination of F. tularensis in a populated area would be expected to result in the abrupt onset of large numbers of cases of acute, non-specific febrile illness beginning 3 to 5 days later (incubation range, 1-14 days), with pleuropneumonitis developing in a significant proportion of cases over the ensuing days and weeks. Without antibiotic treatment, the clinical course could progress to respiratory failure, shock and death.

The overall mortality rate for severe Type A strains has been 5-15%, but in pulmonic or septicemic cases of tularemia without antibiotics treatment the mortality rate has been as high as 30-60%. With treatment, the most recent mortality rates in the US have been 2%. Aminoglycosides, macrolides, chloramphenicol and fluoroquinolones have each been with used with success in the treatment of tularemia.

In the United States, a live-attenuated vaccine derived from the avirulent Live Vaccine Strain (LVS) has been used to protect laboratory personnel routinely working with F. tularensis. Given the short incubation period of tularemia and incomplete protection of current vaccines against inhalational tularemia, vaccination is not recommended for post-exposure prophylaxis.

Given the lack of human-to-human transmission, isolation is not recommended for tularemia patients.

The Working Group lacks information on survival of intentionally-dispersed particles, but would expect a short half-life due to dessication, solar radiation, oxidation and other environmental factors, and a very limited risk from secondary dispersal.

Simple, rapid and reliable diagnostic tests that could be used to identify persons infected with F. tularensis in the mass exposure setting need to be developed. Research is also needed to develop accurate and reliable proced-ures to rapidly detect F. tularensis in environmental samples.