El ignorado papel de la transmisión militar de Covid-19

Autores/as

Palabras clave:

covid-19, militares como vectores de transmisión, transmisión civil-militar de enfermedades infecciosas, militarización d ela salud pública, política crítica de salud pública

Resumen

Con el desarrollo de las tecnologías de la comunicación y el transporte, el aumento del comercio internacional y los movimientos masivos de población, han aumentado las posibilidades de transmisión de agentes de enfermedades infecciosas de persona a persona, junto con la necesidad apremiante de comprender sus mecanismos de transmisión y desarrollar respuestas eficaces para contener su propagación. Desde el inicio de la pandemia de Covid-19, las pruebas masivas, el rastreo de contactos, el aislamiento de los casos confirmados y los diversos grados de restricción de los movimientos de población han contribuido a aplanar la curva global de la enfermedad. Sin embargo, el papel de la transmisión militar en la propagación del Covid-19 se ha pasado por alto en gran medida, no sólo por parte de los propios militares, sino también por parte de los funcionarios gubernamentales, los responsables políticos e incluso los profesionales médicos, a pesar de la abundante literatura que abarca al menos un siglo y que aporta pruebas del papel de los militares como transmisores de patógenos. Llamamos la atención sobre esta omisión, ofrecemos una instantánea de las pruebas históricas de la transmisión militar-civil de enfermedades infecciosas y su impacto desproporcionado en las poblaciones vulnerables, y subrayamos la necesidad de reconocer el papel descuidado de los militares como vector de enfermedades para el diseño y la aplicación con éxito de una política de salud pública más equitativa Covid-19. 

Citas

Worldometer. 2020. Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic. Retrieved August 18, 2020, from https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

Wang, C., Horby, P. W., Hayden, F. G., & Gao, G. F. (2020). A novel coronavirus outbreak of global health concern. The Lancet, 395(10223), 470–473. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30185-9

Hernández, J.C. (2020, February 28). China spins coronavirus crisis, handling itself as a global leader. New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/28/world/asia/china-coronavirus-response-propaganda.html

Schallom, R. (2020, March 21). Diary of a lockdown: What it feels like in 17 cities during the pandemic. Fortune. https://fortune.com/2020/03/21/coronavirus-lockdown-new-york-berlin-rome-cities/

Reuters. (2020, July 21). China requires negative COVID-19 tests for arriving air passengers. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-china-airlines-idUSKCN24M0JN

Global Affairs. (2020, December 17). Flying to Canada: COVID-19 testing for travellers - Travel restrictions in Canada. https://travel.gc.ca/travel-covid/travel-restrictions/flying-canada-checklist/covid-19-testing-travellers-coming-into-canada?utm_campaign=gac-amc-covid-20-21&utm_source=travel-covid_travel-restrictions_flying_&utm_medium=redirect&utm_content=en

Israel extends lockdown, demands all international arrivals present COVID test—Israel News—Haaretz.com. Jan. 19, 2021. Haaretz English. Retrieved March 12, 2021, from https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-israel-extends-lockdown-demands-all-international-arrivals-present-covid-test-1.9465657

Zemke, J.N., Sanchez, J.L., Pang, J., & Gray, G.C. (2019). The double-edged sword of military response to societal disruptions: A systematic review of the evidence for military personnel as pathogen transmitters. The Journal of Infectious Diseases, 220(12), 1873-1884. https://doi.org/10.1093/infdis/jiz400

Barry J. M. (2004). The site of origin of the 1918 influenza pandemic and its public health implications. Journal of Translational Medicine, 2(1), 3. https://doi.org/10.1186/1479-5876-2-3

Shorrock, T. (2019, December 2). Welcome to the monkey house. The New Republic. https://newrepublic.com/article/155707/united-states-military-prostitution-south-korea-monkey-house

Kime, P. (2020, January 15). These military towns have the highest rates of sexually transmitted diseases in the country. Military Times. https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2020/01/15/these-military-towns-have-the-highest-rates-of-sexually-transmitted-diseases-in-the-country/

Cohen, J. (2009, April 25). Behind the scenes: Navy researchers helped spot swine flu in the United States. Science. https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2009/04/behind-scenes-navy-researchers-helped-spot-swine-flu-united-states

Zarocostas, J. (2017). Cholera outbreak in Haiti-from 2010 to today. The Lancet, 389(10086), 2275-2275. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(17)31581-7

Starr, B. (2020, April 26). How the coronavirus pandemic has shaken the US military. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/25/politics/coronavirus-impact-us-military/index.html

Ismay, J. (2020, April 5). Navy captain removed from carrier tests positive for Covid-19. New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/05/magazine/navy-captain-crozier-positive-coronavirus.html

Nkengasong, J.N. & W. Mankoula. (2020) Looming threat of COVID-19 infection in Africa: Act collectively, and fast. The Lancet, 395(10227), 841-842. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30464-5

Erickson, R.J. (1994). Status of forces agreements: A sharing of sovereign prerogative. Air Force Law Review, 37, 137-154. https://heinonline.org/HOL/P?h=hein.journals/airfor37&i=141

World Health Organization. (2005). International Health Regulations. https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/246107/9789241580496-eng.pdf;jsessionid=74BDCFFCEAA7BC89B8CBCFD0746426ED?sequence=1

Michaud, J., Moss, K., Licina, D., Waldman, R., Kamradt-Scott, A., Bartee, M., Lim, M., Williamson, J., Burkle, F., Polyak, C. S., Thomson, N., Heymann, D. L., & Lillywhite, L. (2019). Militaries and global health: peace, conflict, and disaster response. The Lancet, 393(10168), 276–286. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(18)32838-1

Herhalt, C. (2020, April 24). Army deployed to five GTA long-term care homes ravaged by COVID-19. CTV News. https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/these-are-the-five-struggling-long-term-care-homes-the-military-has-been-sent-to-help-1.4910112?cache=yes

Council of Canadians makes landmark nomination of Cuban Medical teams for Nobel Prize. (n.d.). The Council of Canadians. Retrieved March 12, 2021, from https://canadians.org/analysis/council-canadians-makes-landmark-nomination-cuban-medical-teams-nobel-prize

Barrera, J., March 30, 2020 7:51 PM ET | Last Updated:, & 2020. (2020, March 30). Deputy PM Chrystia Freeland cool to Manitoba chiefs’ request for Cuban doctors | CBC News. CBC News. https://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/cuba-doctors-sco-freeland-1.5515416

Jenson, D., & Szabo, V. (n.d.). Cholera in Haiti and Other Caribbean Regions, 19th Century—Volume 17, Number 11—November 2011—Emerging Infectious Diseases journal—CDC. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid1711.110958

Waal, A. de. (2014, November 11). Militarizing Global Health. Boston Review. http://bostonreview.net/world/alex-de-waal-militarizing-global-health-ebola

Chaufan, C., Dutescu, I., Fekre, H., & Noh, K. J. (2020). The military as a disease vector, from the World Wars to Covid-19: A systematic review. Prospero: International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews, https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPEROFILES/188699_PRO

Publicado

2021-08-09

Número

Sección

Investigación Original