Putting an end to speculations that the Ebola virus is spreading to other countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday announced that the outbreak in coastal West Africa is still contained to Guinea and Liberia.
Talking about the cases reported in Sierra Leone, Mali and Ghana, the international health body said,” None of the cases has been confirmed of Ebola. Rumored cases in Mali are still under investigation.”
Out of the 157 suspected cases in Guinea, 101 died so far. Sixty-seven have been confirmed as Ebola.
In Liberia, 21 cases have been reported, out of which 10 have died. Five of the cases have been confirmed as Ebola.
According the WHO, 20 cases are believed to have occurred in Guinea’s capital, Conakry.
“This is one of the most challenging Ebola outbreaks that we have ever faced,” said Dr. Keiji Fukuda, WHO’s assistant director-general for health security.
“The UN agency is trying to track people who had encountered the victims and make sure that all those who have been in contact with infected people are being checked upon,” spokesman Tarik Jasarevic said.
What is Ebola?
Ebola hemorrhagic fever is a fatal disease contracted by humans and nonhuman primates like chimpanzees monkeys and gorillas. Virus Ebolavirus is responsible for causing this disease.
The first cases of Ebola were found in 1976 in Nzara (Sudan) and in Yambuku, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The original host of the disease is unknown but researchers consider animals, mainly bats, as its source.
Symptoms of Ebola
Experts say, the symptoms of Ebola start appearing between 2 and 21 days after initial contact. The common symptoms include fever, weakness, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhea rash poor kidney and liver function. In rare cases, patient can also experience internal and external bleeding.
There is no known cure or vaccine for Ebola. Currently treatments and vaccines are under development but most have not been tested in humans. Patients suffering from this disease usually suffer dehydration. Hence, they are given oral or intravenous fluid containing electrolytes. Patients must be quarantined.
