World Health Organization (WHO) head Margaret Chan has said that the Ebola outbreak in West Africa is spreading faster than efforts to control it.
She made this statement while addressing summit of regional leaders on the issue of Ebola crisis.
She even said that, failure to contain Ebola could be "catastrophic" in terms of lives lost, but could be stopped if well managed.
The WHO is in talks with donors and international agencies to deploy more medical staff and resources to one of the world's poorest regions.
On 31st July 2014, Sierra Leone has declared a health emergency and called in troops to quarantine Ebola victims as latest data shows that it highest number of cases reported.
Liberia is imposing tough controls as the death toll from the worst-ever outbreak of the virus hit 729 in West Africa.
International airlines association (IATA) said that WHO was not recommending any travel restrictions or border closures, and there would be a low risk to other passengers if an Ebola patient flew.
What makes it Difficult to contain current Ebola crisis?
- Coordination is major problem across three nations, to tackle Ebola outbreak.
- Sierra Leone and Liberia have witnesses devastation because of civil wars.
- All three nations have very poor health infrastructure. Liberia has just 0.014 doctors per 1,000 people.
- These nations are not able to provide proper Lab infrastructure, which is required to confirm Ebola cases.
- In early weeks of outbreak, samples were tested from labs in Sengal, France and Germany.
About Ebola Virus
Ebola virus disease (EVD), formerly known as Ebola Haemorrhagic Fever, is a severe disease known to humankind.
Ebola first appeared in 1976 in 2 simultaneous outbreaks, in Nzara, Sudan, and in Yambuku, Democratic Republic of Congo. Yambuku is a village situated near the Ebola River. Hence, the disease got this name.
EVD outbreaks have a case fatality rate of up to 90%.
EVD outbreaks occur primarily in remote villages in Central and West Africa, near tropical rainforests.
Transmission:
It is introduced into the human population through close contact through with the blood,
secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected animals.
The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals (process known as zoonosis) such as Gorillas,Chimpanzees, Fruit Bats, Monkeys,
Forest antelope and Porcupines.
It then spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission.
The infection results from direct contact (through broken skin or mucous membrane) with the bodily fluids or organs of infected persons.
People who have recovered from the disease can be source of infection to others for a few months.
Fruit bats of the Pteropodidae family are considered to be the natural host of the Ebola virus.
There are five distinct species of the Ebola virus Bundibugyo, Côte d'Ivoire, Reston, Sudan and Zaire.
Bundibugyo, Sudan and Zaïre species have been associated with large outbreaks of Ebola
Hemorrhagic Fever (EHF) in Africa causing death in 25-90% of all clinically ill cases, while Côte d'Ivoire and Reston do not have serious problem.
Signs and symptoms:
EVD is a severe viral illness often characterized by the sudden onset of fever, intense weakness, muscle pain, headache and sore throat.
This is followed by vomiting, diarrhoea, rash, impaired kidney and liver function, and in some cases, both internal and external bleeding.
Laboratory findings include low white blood cell and platelet counts and elevated liver enzymes.
The incubation period [the time interval from infection with the virus to onset of symptoms] is 2 to 21 days.
Natural host of Ebola virus:
In Africa, fruit bats, Pteropodidae family are considered possible natural hosts for Ebola virus. As a result, the geographic distribution of Ebola viruses may overlap with the range of the fruit bats.
Bats are local delicacies in Guinea which appear to be the main agent for the Ebola outbreak.
The Health Ministry of Guinea has banned the sale and consumption of bats to prevent the spread of deadly Ebola virus.
Prevention and treatment:
No licensed vaccine for EVD is available. Several vaccines are being tested, but none are available for clinical use.
The predominant treatment is general "supportive theory". Patients are frequently dehydrated and require oral rehydration with solutions containing electrolytes or intravenous fluids.
No specific treatment is available. New drug therapies are being evaluated.
About Supportive therapy: Supportive theory is given in cases where the cure for a disease is difficult/time consuming or not known. Treatment is designed to improve, reinforce or sustain a patient's physiological well-being or self-esteem.
Countries which have recorded Ebola Outbreak:
- Democratic Republic of Congo
- Sudan
- USA
- Phillipines
- Italy
- Gabon
- Ivory Coast
- South Africa
- Uganda
- China
In 2014 - Guinea, Liberia and Sierre Leone.
The current situation is that there is a grave danger of the virus spreading from these African countries and becoming a global epidemic.
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