Brief General History of Ebola
In 1976, Ebola (named after the Ebola River in Zaire) first emerged in Sudan
and Zaire. The first outbreak of Ebola (Ebola-Sudan) infected over 284 people,
with a mortality rate of 53%. A few months later, the second Ebola virus emerged
from Yambuku, Zaire, Ebola-Zaire (EBOZ). EBOZ, with the highest mortality rate
of any of the Ebola viruses (88%), infected 318 people. Despite the tremendous
effort of experienced and dedicated researchers, Ebola's natural reservoir was
never identified. The third strain of Ebola, Ebola Reston (EBOR), was first
identified in 1989 when infected monkeys were imported into Reston, Virginia,
from Mindanao in the Philippines. Fortunately, the few people who were infected
with EBOR (seroconverted) never developed Ebola hemorrhagic fever (EHF). The
last known strain of Ebola, Ebola Cote d'Ivoire (EBO-CI) was discovered in 1994
when a female ethologist performing a necropsy on a dead chimpanzee from the
Tai Forest, Cote d'Ivoire, accidentally infected herself during the necropsy. MORE>>
Ebola virus disease
Key facts
- Ebola virus disease (EVD), formerly known as Ebola haemorrhagic fever, is a severe, often fatal illness in humans.
- The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission.
- The average EVD case fatality rate is around 50%. Case fatality rates have varied from 25% to 90% in past outbreaks.
- The first EVD outbreaks occurred in remote villages in Central
Africa, near tropical rainforests, but the most recent outbreak in west
Africa has involved major urban as well as rural areas.
- Community engagement is key to successfully controlling
outbreaks. Good outbreak control relies on applying a package of
interventions, namely case management, surveillance and contact tracing,
a good laboratory service, safe burials and social mobilisation.
- Early supportive care with rehydration, symptomatic treatment
improves survival. There is as yet no licensed treatment proven to
neutralise the virus but a range of blood, immunological and drug
therapies are under development.
- There are currently no licensed Ebola vaccines but 2 potential candidates are undergoing evaluation.
Ebola virus disease is a severe disease that causes haemorrhagic fever in humans and animals. Diseases that cause
Viral Haemorrhagic Fevers, such as
Ebola, are often fatal as they affect the body’s vascular system and can lead to significant internal bleeding and organ failure.
The
Ebola virus does not spread easily from person to
person. It is spread through direct contact with infected bodily fluids,
not through casual contact. Severely ill patients require intensive
supportive care. The current outbreak of
Ebola is in West Africa. There have not been any cases of
Ebola in Canada and the risk to Ontarians remains low.
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Prevention
Practice
careful hygiene. For example, wash your hands with soap and water or an
alcohol-based hand sanitizer and avoid contact with blood
There is no FDA-approved vaccine available for Ebola.
If you travel to or are in an area affected by an Ebola outbreak, make sure to do the following:
- Practice
careful hygiene. For example, wash your hands with soap and water or an
alcohol-based hand sanitizer and avoid contact with blood and body
fluids.
- Do not handle items that may have come in contact with
an infected person’s blood or body fluids (such as clothes, bedding,
needles, and medical equipment).
- Avoid funeral or burial rituals that require handling the body of someone who has died from Ebola.
- Avoid contact with bats and nonhuman primates or blood, fluids, and raw meat prepared from these animals.
- Avoid
facilities in West Africa where Ebola patients are being treated. The
U.S. embassy or consulate is often able to provide advice on facilities.
- After you return, monitor your health for 21 days and seek medical care immediately if you develop symptoms of Ebola.
Healthcare workers who may be exposed to people with Ebola should follow these steps:
- Wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE).
- Practice proper infection control and sterilization measures. For
more information, see Information for Healthcare Workers and Settings.
- Isolate patients with Ebola from other patients.
- Avoid direct, unprotected contact with the bodies of people who have died from Ebola.
- Notify
health officials if you have had direct contact with the blood or body
fluids, such as but not limited to, feces, saliva, urine, vomit, and
semen of a person who is sick with Ebola. The virus can enter the body
through broken skin or unprotected mucous membranes in, for example, the
eyes, nose, or mouth.
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