Ebola Outbreak Of Ebola Virus

In late 2013, Ebola virus disease (EVD), a deadly and lethal disease, remerged in West Africa spreading to various countries in the region. In humans, the disease is spread through contact with infected bodily fluids leading to haemorrhagic fever (World Health Organization [WHO], 2015). Originating in 1976 in equatorial Africa, past outbreaks with a few hundred cases had been contained within rural, forested areas in Uganda and Congo (Piot, 2012). In 2014, a total of 20, 206 cases and 7,905 deaths were reported to have occurred in up to eight countries worldwide. Of all cases and deaths resulting from the disease, 99.8% occurred in three neighbouring West African countries - Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea (WHO, 2014). With a case fatality rate from about 50% to 90%, and the absence of preventative or curative therapies, the Ebola epidemic has led to overall global alarm and further elucidated existing global health disparities that perpetuated the epidemic with these West African countries.

In 2014, Ebola hemorrhagic fever caused an outbreak in West Africa that officially ended in 2016. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says, “Ebola is a rare and deadly disease caused by infection with one of the Ebola virus species” (“Ebola (Ebola Virus Disease)”). Ebola is caused when a person is in contact with an infected person’s blood or other body fluids. Prevention of contracting the disease include, not touching the dead body of an infected person, not touching body fluids of an infected person, avoiding places infected people are being treated, not touching bats or nonhuman primates

First discovered in the 1970’s, the ebola virus was contained to West Africa (“About Ebola Virus Disease”). Villagers’ diets consisted primarily of the resources readily available. Among these resources were fruit, vegetables, and animals, namely monkeys. Monkeys carried the ebola virus, and when people ate them, without proper cleaning and cooking techniques, they became infected. Ebola, formally known as Zaire Ebola Virus, is transmitted through bodily fluids like saliva, blood, semen, breast milk, mucus, sweat, tears, feces and urine. ("Ebola in West Africa."). Since it was introduced to a third world country, where hygiene is not regarded as important as survival. Without education, protection and segregated sewage, the virus began to spread. In days people were dying after spreading the virus to those closest to them (Waterman). The bodies, though dead, were still harboring the virus and

The control monkeys were never injected with the Ebola virus; they were placed across the room from the sick monkeys. After the control monkeys were found to be infected with Ebola it was proposed that “Ebola drifted across a room. Most likely the control monkeys inhaled it into their lungs” (Preston 93-94). Finding out that Ebola was possibly spread through the air posed as a large problem as Karl Johnson explained to Preston in an interview, “If Ebola had spread through the air, the world would be a very different place today… It would have been exceedingly difficult to contain that virus if it had had any major respiratory component” (Preston 121). The Ebola strain that Johnson encountered appeared to not be spread through the air, however there is substantial evidence that other strains are. “In 2012 Canadian researchers found that Ebola Zaire, which is involved in the current outbreak, was passed from pigs to monkeys in the air” (Cohen 1). Ebola is aggressive enough that some researchers believe it is able to enter a person’s bloodstream through a small scrape (Preston 142-143). Ebola was actually spread by medical staff in some areas such as the Yambuku Hospital where nuns used five needles a day for hundreds of their patients. This mixed blood and gave Ebola the opportunity to spread (Preston 102). It

More active disease surveillance needs to occur. This means that health care workers should be encouraged to document and report those they think have been exposed and their contacts. In more effectively reporting suspected cases, Ebola response teams are better able to promptly follow-up, transfer to isolation centers, and assess the scope of the epidemic (Matua, Van der Wal, & Locsin,

While Ebola is not an airborne virus, it can be transmitted through direct contact with an infected person’s fluids, such as blood, urine, vomit, sweat, semen and sexual contact (Nevins, 2014). With these deadly symptoms and ease of transmission, the Ebola virus can quickly wipe out an entire community. Yet, scientists have found that the severity of the disease in humans varies widely, from rapid fatality to mild illness or even asymptomatic response, further complicating the ability to quickly identify infected patients and reduce the possibility of transmission (Kolata, 2014). Moreover, the virus has different strains and mutates according to the specific environmental conditions in which it exists (Peters et al., 1991).

The Virus in body fluids (such as blood) can survive up to several days at room temperature. Ebolaviruses can also be inactivated by heating for 30 to 60 min at 60°C, boiling for 5 min. Laboratory studies done under environmental conditions that favor the persistence of virus found that Ebola virus titers on contaminated solid surfaces decrease rapidly at room temperature but that viability can persist for several days at 4°C. Continuing scientific research is therefore essential to develop a clearer understanding of the virus and its mechanisms so that vaccines and treatment protocols can be developed alongside education programs designed to help people avoid contracting the virus and also prevent its

The filovirus family encompasses two genera: Ebolavirus and Marburgvirus; note that filoviruses are zoonotic, and have recently been traced to some species of African bats (CDC 2014). Currently, there are four species of ebolavirus that cause disease in humans: Ebola virus, Sudan virus, Tai Forest virus, and Bundibugyo virus (CDC 2015 B, 1). For the purposes of this scenario, Ebola virus will be the agent of focus and use. Symptoms of Ebola virus infection range from common illness characteristics, such as fever and fatigue, to the more detrimental characteristics of unexplained bleeding, vomiting, diarrhea, and body pains; symptoms can appear anywhere from two days to three weeks after exposure (CDC 2015 B, 1). Transmission of infection occurs through direct contact between an individual’s mucous membranes or broken skin and body fluids of an infected person (CDC 2015 A). Body fluids can include sweat, saliva, blood, semen, and urine, amongst several others. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has stated that “Although … the viruses display some capability of infection through small-particle aerosols, airborne spread among humans has not been clearly demonstrated”

Ebola was first recognized in 1976 as the cause of outbreaks of disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (then known as Zaire) and in Sudan. About three hundred people in each of the two nations were infected with the virus, resulting in a mortality rate of 88% in Zaire, and 53% in Sudan (Bulletin of the WHO 1978). The disease as it was discovered spread through direct contact of unmans to humans, and then thought, from non-human primates to humans. The epidemic was a result of unsafe and unsanitary hospital practices, and non-sterilized medical equipment. The disease was then contained, however sporadic outbreaks of the Zaire and Sudan Ebola subtypes have risen in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Uganda, and Sudan; one of the latest outbreaks was in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in September of 2007.

The standard treatment for Ebola is still limited to supportive therapy as no vaccines are yet available for clinical use. The supportive therapy consists of balancing the patient’s fluids and electrolytes, maintaining the patient’s oxygen status and blood pressure, and treating the patient for any complicating infections. Treatment from the day the virus is contracted is important but extremely challenging due to the fact that Ebola is very difficult to diagnose in its early stages of infection. However, if a person has the early symptoms of Ebola and there is reason to believe that Ebola should be considered it is extremely important that the patient is isolated

got sick and died. This outbreak infected 318 with a death rate of 93% (Le

Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) is a virus transmitted from humans or animals through body fluids. It is transmitted by means of contact with infected blood, mucous membranes, semen and other secretions, therefore being skin lesions and sexual contact significant ways of transmission (Boulton, 2014). As a transmittable disease, progression of the virus had been thought to be linked to higher probabilities of transmission, and therefore safety of persons in contact with infected patients was in question (Yamin et al., 2015). A study conducted in Liberia in 2014 proved such hypothesis to be true and concluded that prompt and accurate isolation of infected patients was a safe method

The fight for who can proceed in experiments to find the cure for Ebola is on. In the experiments done by the lab scientists from, Therapeutic Intervention of Ebola Virus Infection in Rhesus Macaques with the MB-003 Monoclonal Antibody Cocktail persisted in a slight solution that resulted a minor success, but a success that is well needed. On the other hand, Dr. Lipstich feels that the results may not be so worth it considering that high risk of the scientists themselves catching the deadly virus. The virus held in its early stages in West Africa, where the first host was a little boy that had died in pain. From then the virus spread abruptly from one host to another. As American scientists try to search for the cure in other diseases such as fatal fibrosis, they realized once the damage was done that there was a deadlier, possibly airborne

Ebola is the global killer and communicable disease of the world with 69 % case fatality rate, whereas only Zaire strain virus has 90% case fatality rate. It attacks Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, especially the west African’s region as

The symptoms of Ebola are a fever, headache, joint and muscle aches, vomiting, stomach pain, sore throat, diarrhea, weakness and occasionally read eyes, rashes, hiccups, and internal and external bleeding and since these symptoms are not specific to Ebola, it is difficult to clinically diagnose and can often be confused with other viruses. The ELISA testing, short for enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and virus isolation are a couple of examples of the types of laboratory testing that can be done to diagnose and Ebola patient. Because of how easily it can be transmitted, it is extremely difficult to treat and there is no approved, official treatment. As of now, there is not standard treatment but usually the patients are given fluids and oxygen, have their blood pressure monitored and other necessary treatment. To prevent transmission and spreading the virus, the doctors use extreme caution and wear head to toe protective gear and isolate the patient. Even though the Ebola virus is common in Africa, there has been no known outbreak in the United States. Another difficulty facing scientists and the treatment for Ebola is that the natural reservoir for the virus unknown. The natural reservoir of a virus is it’s long term host of the