Tests Prove HIV And Hepatitis Tainted Blood Used In Red Shirt Protests

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Blood used in Red Shirt protest tainted with severe communicable diseases: medics

BANGKOK (TNA) -- The Mahidol University medical group disclosed that test results of blood collected from sites targetted by the Red Shirt blood-pouring protest were tainted with severe communicable diseases, including HIV/AIDS.

The test results of blood samples collected from several sites where the blood-splattering protest took place were tainted with severe diseases, including Hepatitis B and C as well as HIV/AIDS.

Dr Kusol Prawitpaiboon, representative of the Mahidol University medical group, said Thursday while submitting the blood test results to the prime minister's representative Issara Sunthornwat.

The medics expressed concern that the protesters and other people at the blood-pouring sites, who had cuts, might be exposed to the tainted blood and risk contracting the diseases.

The diseases also can live outside the human body in normal condition for about six hours.

Meanwhile, laboratory tests found that the blood used in the symbolic blood-pouring protests included pig and cattle fluids, Dr Kusol said.

Regarding possible HIV/AIDS infection from the splattering protest, Permanent Secretary for Public Health Paichit Varachit explained that the chance of contracting the virus was slim.

The possible HIV/AIDS contraction generally was caused by the virus-concentrated blood infecting through open wounds or the eyes, which were the most sensitive and high-risk spots.

Following past blood-pouring protests, several media workers and cameramen asked for anti-viral pills from the ministry, said Dr Paichit.

Meanwhile, Dr Somsak Lolekha, president of the Medical Council of Thailand, said that the symbolic blood-pouring protest will be raised in the ethics subcommittee meeting on April 8 to consider whether or not such a kind of action violates medical ethics.

Dr Somsak added that persons contracting HIV/AIDS from the protest can make complaint to the council.

Regarding the possibility of contracting the virus, the medical council head said normally it is not easy to be infected unless these persons have injuries and were soaked by the disease-concentrated blood.

The anti-government Red Shirts began the blood-pouring symbolic protest, splattering their own blood at Government House and Democrat Party headquarters on March 16, then at the premier' s residence in the Sukhumvit area on March 17 as part of their intensified campaign topple the Abhisit Vejjajiva administration. (TNA)

-- TNA 2010-04-01

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[Slip]

The whole affair of blood throwing is truly distasteful. This just dragged it down to a much nastier level.

BTW why did this post take 2.5 hours from sms service from TV to the site proper?

[gbswales]

Hardly news - if you take blood from a large random number of people then this result is inevitable. Good scaremongering tactics from the government but that is about it - any intelligent person knows that blood carries risk

[TheOldWolf]

It was in the Bangkok Post many hours ago. So the report is false? The Mahidol University medical group has made it all up?

[bloody tiger]

its takes less than 5 minutes to conduct the actual aids test.....add on say 3 hours each way for the blood to be transported to the hospital/testing facility and the reslts to be returned......you have around 4 hours....add a few more hours for "RED SHIRT" traffic jams...........hey they poured the blood over 2 weeks ago.......but today they release the results????????? Obv a govt generated piece of BS....tarnish the reds at all cost....they want democracy....don't let them

[ozzieman05]

Nw you have my Thai wife worried

She has a large family back in Issan

and it only takes 2 or 3 people to start of an ecademic

what about the Monk who through blood at people

Is it time the Government stood up and started to act like a government

enoough is enough

Do this in America or Australia and you would be in a cell so fast

Come on Thailand, time for the Government to act like a Government

[SabaiBKK]

people fighting for DEMOCRACY !!!! hahahahahahahha ahahahahahahah they want to reinstate a dictator and its clique of most corrupt politicians .... but its for democracy ...

i cannot stop laughing at some people gullibility

NOTE: this was to answer someone whose post disappeared who was saying that some newspaper was scoffing at " people fighting for democracy"

Edited April 1, 2010 by SabaiBKK

[ozzieman05]

"It was in the Bangkok Post many hours ago. So the report is false? The Mahidol University medical group has made it all up?"

Are you ready to back you life on this

maybe a joke today

but what about in a week or 2 weeks

This is serious

and intent when they did the act

There was no way they could know if the blood they got was infected as it was never tested

Intent is just as bad as to do

[BlackJack]

well now we can associate the reds shirts with AIDS and sick people from the north

either a brilliant move on the governments behalf

or

TRUE

or

not true

BUT there maybe a few going off to the clinic soon

my condolences to the family and friends

[Paul123456]

people fighting for DEMOCRACY !!!! hahahahahahahha ahahahahahahah they want to reinstate a dictator and its clique of most corrupt politicians .... but its for democracy ...

i cannot stop laughing at some people gullibility

NOTE: this was to answer someone whose post disappeared who was saying that some newspaper was scoffing at " people fighting for democracy"

Exactly

[wlcart]

I don't think anyone will get HIV or Hep, but regardless, spreading blood around in a moist and hot environment is a reckless thing to do, but it sure made for some catchy TV time on CNN.

[wlcart]

people fighting for DEMOCRACY !!!! hahahahahahahha ahahahahahahah they want to reinstate a dictator and its clique of most corrupt politicians .... but its for democracy ...

i cannot stop laughing at some people gullibility

NOTE: this was to answer someone whose post disappeared who was saying that some newspaper was scoffing at " people fighting for democracy"

one of the unfortunate realities of a democracy is the people can elect a dictator if the want. Not all democratic decisions are good ones.

Edited April 1, 2010 by wlcart

[Deeral]

A thoroughly scurrilous piece of reporting, I frankly I'm surprised that Thaivisa saw fit to post it.

[geriatrickid]

What an irresponsible article, even if April 1.

First there is a claim attributed to Dr Kusol Prawitpaiboon that the blood was tainted and that the "diseases also can live outside the human body in normal condition for about six hours". No evidence was cited how the blood was collected or if anyone was exposed. Just a horrible cheap article that will spread fear.

This doctor has just made medical history with his claims on the longevity of the various viruses since HIV starts to degrade once it is deprived of oxygen and away from human ambient core temperature. The time is measured in minutes not hours.

6 hours only? Not for HCB, it can go for 10 days and the klongs of bangkok are swimming with it. HCV is good for 4-5 days and is concurrent with HIV because it is associated with IV drug users. (Nice insinuation) If this guy was serious he would have raised the issue of TB, but that would have necessitated pointing out that on any given day the trains and subway of Bangkok are filled with carriers and that might expose a secret no one wants to discuss openly.

I am not going to bash this fellow because I think his statements were taken out of context and distorted. I know he is no friend of the Thaksin camp, but I can't see him making statements that would incite panic. Not that it isn't possible he could be given to rhetoric if this is the same fellow that was one of the communist sympathizers that participated in the Oct. 6, 1976 student protests at Thammasat University back when he was in medical school. He hounded former PM Samak Sundaravej for the deaths of the students saying the student deaths were his doing. In health research a person with such views that would undertake such research is considered biased and any data provided by a biased researcher is deemed tainted. A neutral party should have overseen this exercise.

However, the same doctor admitted that tests found that the blood used in the symbolic blood-pouring protests included pig and cattle fluids. Ya think? It wasn't any big secret. The human blood gathered was small and for the cameras. Several people in TV picked up on the sham that the blood event was going to be when they wrote that they expected animal byproducts to be used. The redshirts did what all other theaterical producers do, they went out and got the props for the show.

Thankfully the record is set straight by Permanent Secretary for Public Health Paichit Varachit with his statement that the chance of contracting the virus was slim. And there is the comment from Dr Somsak Lolekha, president of the Medical Council of Thailand, who said it is not easy to be infected unless these persons have injuries and were soaked by the disease-concentrated blood.

For what it's worth, the typical visitor to a Thai tattoo parlour or some dentist offices is at greater risk of contracting hepatitis than were bystanders at the blood splatter party. But shhh, we can't mention that and the absence of health surveillance.

[astral]

Not really surprising.........

I just hope they did not share needles.

[elcent]

quite logical that some blood would be contaminated.

[TallForeigner]

Hardly news - if you take blood from a large random number of people then this result is inevitable. Good scaremongering tactics from the government but that is about it - any intelligent person knows that blood carries risk

You are absolutely right!

I agree; it's nothing but stupid scaremongering and dumb sensationalism. No one will contract the HIV virus from this blood - the chances are really negligable. Have you seen someone with deep, bleeding cuts taking a bath in the fresh blood?

It's right, some HIV tests could be done quickly - but these tests would not necessarily show that there is actual HIV virus in the blood - these tests would just show that there are antibodies against the HIV virus. Once you were infected with the virus but you bring your virus load down to undetectable you will still have HIV antibodies...

Other blood tests might take much longer.

Edited April 1, 2010 by TallForeigner

[Skywalker69]

Pigsblood? Is this proof that Mr T donated his blood as well???

[321niti123]

I knew it!!!

[zorro1]

zzzzzzzzzzzz

[gotlost]

[freedom4life]

its takes less than 5 minutes to conduct the actual aids test.....add on say 3 hours each way for the blood to be transported to the hospital/testing facility and the reslts to be returned......you have around 4 hours....add a few more hours for "RED SHIRT" traffic jams...........hey they poured the blood over 2 weeks ago.......but today they release the results????????? Obv a govt generated piece of BS....tarnish the reds at all cost....they want democracy....don't let them

I agree...make the reds look bad at all costs, thus diverting away from the real issues. Hey mainstream media and gov't!! Your days are numbered!!

[huma79]

Why would they even bother testing it? Anyone with half a brain would realize that the odds of every donor being perfectly disease-free is slim-to-none. This news report reeks of government propaganda.

[swat]

Red disease not only in their shirt,s.Please go home.

[NamKangMan]

Hardly news - if you take blood from a large random number of people then this result is inevitable. Good scaremongering tactics from the government but that is about it - any intelligent person knows that blood carries risk

110% agree - just statistic medical data that exists in every population no matter what country.

[freedom4life]

Excellent.. you noticed that too about the longevity of the virus living outside the body of a host being in minutes..and a lot longer before they even tossed the objects filled with the contaminated fluid. Best to ignore any mainstream media reports-can't be trusted.

[givenall]

As I said before in earlier post this is one more legacy of Mr. Thaksin. As usual, I am sure he can sleep at nights not even thinking about what he has accomplished

[oceano]

Forget one point very important:

When the minister of public healt say was a bad idea for all this....they put some liquid that make the blood non contaminated for hoter people, how can they check if they put for example dettol inside?

[krakatoa]

Quite frankly who gives a shyt.

Let them throw as much blood as they want (it only shows their nethanderal roots) as long as none of it lands on me.

So what's the big deal, they kill two persons an hour on the roads so what??

In 1977 during the financial crisis (that Thailand created) two people were committing suicide every hour in Bangkok alone. Was anyone seriously concerned "I doubt it"

They should be using rubber bullets and water cannons on these imbeciles.

As much as dislike Suchinda and Issaraprong they had the right idea "mow them down with AK47's"

[nephron]

You would expect to find HIV, Hep B and Hep C in the blood spilt in an area like Thailand where there is a high rate of infection, unless the red shirts had gone to the trouble of screening the blood for infections first (which it would be appear they didn't).