THE latest outbreak of Ebola has left more than 670 people dead in west Africa – but what is this killer disease?
Ebola, which mainly
occurs in remote villages in Central and Western Africa, is a severe
acute viral illness which has a 90 per cent death rate. Every person
infected will go on to infect two-and-a-half more.
Symptoms
include the sudden onset of fever, intense weakness, muscle pain,
headache and a sore throat. This is followed by vomiting, diarrhoea,
rash, impaired kidney and liver function, and in some cases, both
internal and external bleeding.
It can take up to 21 days for symptoms to show after being infected.
The
natural hosts of the virus are believed to be Fruit bats of the
Pteropodidae family. The disease is named after the Ebola river, that
runs through Zaire and the Congo where it originated.
Hungry
and desperate people who began eating the disease riddled bats to stave
off starvation are believed to be the cause for virus jumping into
humans in the 1970s.
It's in the lap of the gods if you're lucky to be one of the few who survive
Ebola can be passed to
humans through close contact with the blood, organs or other bodily
fluids of infected animals, with cases of transmission documented
through the handling of chimpanzees, gorillas, fruit bats, monkeys and
porcupines.
It can then spread between humans as a result of direct contact with the blood, organs or other bodily fluids of those infected.
As
a result healthcare workers are most at risk but mourners at
traditional burial ceremonies are also often affected and contribute to
the spread of the disease because of direct contact with bodies.
Up to 90 per cent of cases of Ebola result in death and there is currently no cure or vaccine for the virus.
The current outbreak, thought to have started in Guinea, has so far spread to Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria.
Dr
Derek Gatherer, a specialist in the evolution of viruses, said the
panic after the death in Nigeria of US citizen Patrick Sawyer was
justified.
He said: "Anyone on the same plane could
have become infected because Ebola is easy to catch. It can be passed on
through vomiting, diarrhoea or even from simply saliva or sweat - as
well as being sexually transmitted.
"That is why there
is such alarm over Mr Sawyer because he became ill on the flight so
anyone else sharing the plane could have been infected by his vomit or
other bodily fluids."
Dr
Gatherer, of Lancaster University, added: "Only about 10 per cent
recover. The outlook is pretty bleak. There is no treatment - nothing
you can do yourself. It's in the lap of the gods if you're lucky to be
one of the few who survive.
"If it's spotted in the
early stages you can be given oral rehydration in hospital to replenish
the liquid the body is losing because of the diarrhoea - or be put on an
intravenous drip if the vomiting means you can't keep a pill down.
"You may get a painkiller for the headaches and opiates to calm the nerves.
"In
the early stages Ebola attacks the same immune system cells as Aids.
People who resist this early onslaught are more likely to survive.
"In
the case of a pandemic it means doctors could test people early so they
can concentrate on those patients rather than ones whose cells are
shot." Dr Gatherer said research into experimental vaccines have been
going on for decades and one could be available in the next "three to
five years".
He said Ebola has an infection rate of between 2.4
and 2.6 - the number of cases expected to emanate out of every person
that is struck down.
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