Ebola: The virus that refused to go away

The recent cases of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo raises questions about the containment of the disease in Africa. In this report, WALE ELEGBEDE writes on the need to safeguard the continent against another bout of EVD outbreak

Although the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) first surfaced in two simultaneous outbreaks in Sudan and the then Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo {DRC}) in 1976, the major outbreak that took the world by storm happened in 2014 and was mostly confined to Sub-Saharan Africa.

In contrast to previous outbreaks, the 2014 EVD epidemic, which was first identified in Guinea, recorded an estimated 27,984 cases and 11,298 deaths.

From where it started in Guinea in December 2013 when an 18-month-old baby from a small village in Guinea was infected by bats, it extended to Sierra Leone, Liberia, Senegal, Nigeria, Mali, and also extended its spread to the United States (US) and Spain.

EVD, a rare and deadly disease, is a viral hemorrhagic fever of humans and other primates (monkeys, gorillas, and chimpanzees) caused by ebolaviruses. Fruit bats are believed to be the normal carrier in nature and are able to spread the virus without being affected by it.

Signs and symptoms typically start between two days and three weeks after contracting the virus with a fever, sore throat, muscular pain, and headaches. Vomiting, diarrhoea and rash usually follow, along with decreased function of the liver and kidneys. At this time, some people begin to bleed both internally and externally.

https://newtelegraphonline.com/2018/08/ebola-still-a-long-walk-to-safety-in-africa/