Drywashing pics from Az.

[AzViper]

Are you confusing (or intertwining) Rift Valley Fever with Coccidioidomycocis (Arizona Valley Fever)?

One is a fungal disease, one is a bacterial or mycotic disease? The fungal disease is the one Arizona (and other southwestern places have).

This is from the CDC:

YOUR concern (rift Valley fever) - happens overseas - not here in the US.


http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/spb/mnpages/dispages/Fact_Sheets/Rift Valley Fever Fact Sheet.pdf


What we are really talking about:

Coccidioidomycosis as a Common Cause of Community-acquired Pneumonia - Vol. 12 No. 6 - June 2006 - Emerging Infectious Disease journal - CDC


If 6 of your friends died from it - get new doctors.

Beth

Beth thank you for getting it right. I have lived in Tucson for 56 years. Raced off-road for many years and breathed more dust than you can imagine during the Baja 500 and 1000 mile race through Mexico. I have race many races in Arizona and Nevada. Those who have live in the southwest for any length of time have had the symptoms and most likely had no clue what was wrong with them.

Do people die from Valley Fever?
Less than 1% of the people who get Valley Fever die from it.

Richard Kadolpf--Gr Holk--John Pierre--Ray Kline--Bob Diffenback--and MANY MORE from the OC 49er Club in OC died a HORRIBLE death from it--again CDC has the info--err on the side a caution as some folks get lucky BUT a dirtnap is NOT a thang to mess with---over paranoid BUT I'M STILL ALIVE AND AT LEAST 6 BUDS ARE DEAD--John Thanx much Yellow Hammer for the exact info to keep them lungs in the pink

John you must be one unlucky person to have known 6 friends who have died from Valley Fever. In all my years of living in Arizona I do not know anyone nor have I heard any of my friends ever discussing someone they knew that has contacted or died from Valley Fever.

Personally I would be more concern of coming in contact with Hantavirus.

Hantavirus is carried by rodents, especially deer mice. The virus is found in their urine and feces, but it does not make the animal sick. It is believed that humans can get sick with this virus if they come in contact with contaminated dust from mice nests or droppings. You may come in contact with such dust when cleaning homes, sheds, or other enclosed areas that have been empty for a long time. However, only a couple of cases have been directly linked to camping or hiking. Most people who are exposed to the virus have come in contact with rodent droppings in their own homes. Hantavirus is a serious infection that gets worse quickly. Lung failure can occur and may lead to death. Even with aggressive treatment, more than half of people who have this disease in their lungs die.

 

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[mellowyellow]

Wear the mask, be safe.. I hear about peeps catching valley fever a fair amount here in SoCal. 2 guys that worked the Red Chispas this summer got it bad.. Ughh. Sucks.

Wear a mask

 

[kuger]

I had it and tell ya......I wanted to die!I know of 7 guys that got it at the same time I did in the same area.I have a very close friend who has it right now and has been down and out for over a year,Doc's recently toldhim he can not be around dust!!Hell of a thing for a cowboy who works construction!!

Also the Dept. of Corrections recently moved the most suceptible inmates from a Central Valley Prison because of an epidemic
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/califo...e-inmates-risk-valley-fever/story?id=19579850

 

[AZADAM]

One of the interesting things I found with my Keene electrostatic concentrator was, one day while cleaning it up, (for want of something better to do,) I removed the riffles and the frame stretched cloth under them and found a lot of dust in the "air-box". Just out of curiosity, I put all of the dust in a small pan and panned it down.

Believe it or not, there was quite a lot of fine gold. It wasn't course enough to qualify for flour gold. When I put it in a vial of water, it wasn't much more than a gold colored sludge. It was so find, I never did weigh it, but I guessimated at about 3 grams, collected from less than 4 cubic ft. of concentrates.
I've often wondered if I was the only one to discover this.

A friend of mine does this regularly and recovers a powder type gold from the box itself.

 

[Seden]

Yeah I had a bad case of Valley Fever as a kid. And the air sacs at the top of my lungs expanded and became thin so when in my senior year of Senior High my right lung collapsed and darn near didn't graduate I was off for 3 weeks as pleurisy gave me a bad fever. Then 5 months passed and the Right Lung collapsed again and ended up in the hospital as they put a chest tube in to help the lung re-inflate. A month later another collapsed lung and had the Pleural stripping operation done so my lung wouldn't colllapse. Then in the following spring my the back of my left lung just tore open and into the hospital for the same operation that was done to my right lung. Now I have matching scars on each side that go from under my Man breast all the way around to the top of my shoulder blades. Made for a great story in the Gym Locker room. Wow man what happened to you I'd get asked and my BS reply was "oh man, I took some shrapenal in Viet Nam,it was hell over there. One day this wise guy young Engineer said,ok cut the crap,what really happened. Doh! I was told by a surgeon familiar with Valley Fever that it is a fact that once you have had it you are immune for life. Also you will always test positive for it forever.

Randy-Desert Rat in good standing.

 

[RCGoodin]

Ok, which mask is the correct one to use? I get the warnings and plan to dig in the desert. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

 

[SLNugget]

Ok, which mask is the correct one to use? I get the warnings and plan to dig in the desert. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

I just got some 3M 8200/07023 N95 masks. I don't know if they r the correct ones tho. Way better than cheap paint spray masks at the hardware store IMO.

 

[rodoconnor]

Randy, I know this posting is a bit late, I too had Valley Fever as a kid growing up in S. Kal. I also got it again when I was in my 50s. Si it is possible to get it twice. BTW, it is a horrible d&mned thing to get !!

 

[mellowyellow]

I just got some 3M 8200/07023 N95 masks. I don't know if they r the correct ones tho. Way better than cheap paint spray masks at the hardware store IMO.

It should a one way valve at the mouth level.. If so, your good! Gets to diggin

 

[kazcoro]

Properly, you should be tested to see if you are fit enough to wear a respirator. Then, you are fitted. If you are not getting enough oxygen, you pass out. If you pass out and you are not getting enough oxygen, you die. From what I am reading on here, you are looking at a respirator? Not just a nuisance dust mask?

 

[SLNugget]

It should a one way valve at the mouth level.. If so, your good! Gets to diggin

I found this info on the CDC website:


How can I prevent coccidioidomycosis?

It is very difficult to avoid exposure to Coccidioides, but people who live in endemic regions should try to avoid dusty environments if possible. People who are at risk for severe disease can take the following measures to avoid exposure.
•Wear an N95 mask if you must be in or near a dusty environment, such as a construction zone
•Avoid activities that involve close contact to dust including yard work, gardening, and digging
•Use air quality improvement measures indoors such as HEPA filters
•Take prophylactic anti-fungal medication if deemed necessary by your healthcare provider
•Clean skin injuries well with soap and water, especially if they have been exposed to soil or dust

Currently, there is no vaccine available to prevent coccidioidomycosis; however, several research agencies are working to develop a vaccine.

It appears the N95 masks I got are suitable for prevention.

And apparently breathing the spores is not the only way to contact the disease. You gotta watch for cuts and scrapes also.

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

IGNORE ANYONE WHO GIVES YOU VALLEY FEVER HORROR STORIES.

anyone who has been in the southwestern deserts for two weeks has had valley fever...only a few have issues beyond buying a box of Kleenex.

really...what is the problem with some of these people?

 

[mellowyellow]

IGNORE ANYONE WHO GIVES YOU VALLEY FEVER HORROR STORIES. anyone who has been in the southwestern deserts for two weeks has had valley fever...only a few have issues beyond buying a box of Kleenex. really...what is the problem with some of these people?

THATS A BOLD STATEMENT PAWS... When people on this forum have had family members and friends suffer and die from .. Yes.. VALLEY FEVER.

Might want to do a bit more research on VF paws..

Check this vid..

http://bit.ly/PgLfmQ.

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

just more bs to frighten people with...
yes. a bold statement...because it is true...sorry for any suffering..

but the reality is...if you are in this desert for two weeks...you have been infected/exposed to valley fever.
yes, persons with lung ailments or immunity issues will do best to avoid Arizona......

 

[mellowyellow]

I will keep wearing my dust masks.. I know I'm gonna die, but don't wanna die chocking to death slowly. Spores start in the lungs and spread slowly to rest of body.. Usually the brain next.. Hence why valley fever is considered a dangerous from of meningitis.

Wearing a dust mask is like wearing a rubber.. You don't want em on.. But if u don't , u know what will potentially happen. Play the odds enough.. And YOU WIN! / Or looooose


I agree to disagree doctor

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

'you're making the doctor happy unhappy...'

so I blew it...waited for this arroyo to dry out...so I could work the solid layer of black sand...now, our imported weather people on television are calling for rain...
and this arroyo gets wicked in the rain...

 

[roadrunner]

PWP.remember the saying, "anyone who predicts Arizona's weather is a newcomer,or fool".
This stuff changes so fast here,or does not show up.

 

[frankly]

I had some version of this afer dry wahing in AZ. I developed pneumonia from whatever it was that I caught and was on a ventilator for two days. I also met a woman who's daughter died after walking around the desert and gem hunting and playing in AZ. Sh develpoed a fever and died at home. People may also dig up old diseases left over from the pioneer days that are still in the ground around old towns. I would ever dig in AZ without a mask again.

 

[AzViper]

As I said earlier I have been exposed to more dust in a few days than many of you will ever see in your lifetime. I have been in Az for 56 years and most likely I have had VF and never knew it. Those that have lived in Az. for any length of time have been exposed to VF and have developed a resistance to VF.

I do not think twice about being in the desert or the dust. There are far more dangerous things among the desert than our dust that concerns me. Storm’s such as Haboo’s can stir up more deadly chemicals and dump onto hundreds of thousands of people in a very short period of time. I use to drive to the Phoenix area from Tucson 3 times a week to take my boys BMX racing. While driving north on 587 across the Indian Reservation near Santan we got caught in a Haboo. Totally amazing!!!

​

 

[elgatodelnoche]

PWP.remember the saying, "anyone who predicts Arizona's weather is a newcomer,or fool".
This stuff changes so fast here,or does not show up.

Clear and sunny. That is my prediction for 301 out of 365 days.