Probing into the factors that led to the widespread outbreak, setting forth plans to counter evd cases in developing countries, and devising definitive measures to limit the spread of the disease are. There have been multiple outbreaks across africa and one in the united states. The deadliest outbreak of ebola virus on record has sparked fears that the killer virus could spread from west africa to other regions and continents. In this article, we present an overview of the pathogen, its epidemiology and transmission, clinical and laboratory manifestations, treatment and infection control procedures, with an emphasis on what is known about ebola virus disease in the pediatric population.
The emerging infectious diseases journal has published many articles on ebola. The ebola virus basically causes uncontrollable bleeding externally. Researchers believe that the virus first spreads from an infected animal to a human. Ebola virus disease evd, or simply ebola, is a viral haemorrhagic fever of humans and other primates caused by ebolaviruses. It can then spread from human to human through direct contact with a patients blood or secretions. Ebola virus disease, viral haemorrhagic fever, filovirus. The latest epidemics first case was reported in the democratic republic of the congo drc in august 2018. Ebola spotlight emerging infectious diseases journal cdc. The ongoing epidemic of ebola virus disease evd in the democratic republic of congo drc is the tenth and largest evd outbreak in the drc since zaire.
The ebola virus epidemic burst in west africa in late 20, started in guinea, reached in a few months an alarming diffusion, actually involving several countries liberia, sierra leone, nigeria, senegal, and mali. Clinical presentation of patients with ebola virus disease in conakry, guinea new england journal of medicine, january 2015. Limited evidence is available on pediatric disease course and prognosis. Of these, two tested positive for ebola virus, zaire ebolavirus species, by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction rtpcr on 7 may 2018, and the outbreak was officially declared on 8 may 2018. An epidemic of ebola virus disease is occurring in western africa on a scale not seen before, particularly in the countries of guinea, liberia, and sierra leone. This outbreak follows the devastating ebola epidemic that swept through west africa between 2014 and 2016, resulting in more than 28,600 infections and 11,000 deaths. Residues differentially conserved between ebola and reston viruses are shown in red present in interface, orange not in the interface site, they are and labelled with the ebola virus amino acid, residue number followed by the reston virus amino acid. Ebola is a rare but deadly virus that causes fever, body aches, and diarrhea, and sometimes bleeding inside and outside the body.
Ebola virus disease democratic republic of the congo date of information. Additionally, we have included articles and reports referenced in the ba sic literature. Zebovgp ebola vaccine during the sierra leone trial to introduce a vaccine against ebola. Ebola virus disease evd, one of the deadliest viral diseases, was discovered in 1976 when two consecutive outbreaks of fatal hemorrhagic fever occurred in different parts of central africa. The socioeconomic impact of the disease has been devastating. National ebola recovery strategy for sierra leone a. Heres what you need to know about the latest ebola. Ebola virus disease is a serious, often fatal condition in humans and nonhuman primates. History of ebola virus disease error processing ssi file. First fdaapproved vaccine for the prevention of ebola. Several patients diagnosed with ebola virus disease in africa have been evacuated.
Neurocognitive assessment was normal, but the patient reported ongoing fatigue. The ongoing ebola epidemic in the democratic republic of. The first evd outbreak was reported in the 1970s in zaire now the democratic. Fruit bats belonging to the pteropodidae family are thought to be the natural hosts of the ebola virus, although the virus has not been isolated yet from bats in natural conditions. The current ebola outbreak in west africa is unprecedented in magnitude and duration and, as of november 30, 2014, shows no signs of abating. Ebola is one of several viral hemorrhagic fevers, caused by infection with a virus of the filoviridae. Fruit bats belonging to the pteropodidae family are thought to be the natural hosts of the ebola virus, although the virus has not been isolated yet. Ebola virus disease 202014 outbreak in west africa. Get latest news information, articles on ebola virus updated on april, 2020 15. Ebola virus disease is considered to be zoonotic, with occasional spillovers to humans, apes, and possibly other animals. The virus, named for the region in congo kinshasa where it was first identified in 1976, emerged from the rain forest, where it survives in as yet unconfirmed hosts, possibly several species of fruit bats but potentially other mammal species. In conclusion, although the continued development of. Investigating ebola virus pathogenicity using molecular. Guinea and liberia, the first nations affected by the outbreak, have put in place measures to contain the spread, supported by international organizations.
We have used cryoelectron microscopy and tomography to visualize ebola virus particles, as well. Ebola hemorrhagic fever alternatively ebola haemorrhagic fever, ehf, or just ebola is a very rare, but severe, mostly fatal infectious disease occurring in humans and other primates, caused by. The ebola virus is an extremely deadly virus found in africa. For the first time, cases of ebola virus disease have been diagnosed in the us, originating from patients who traveled during the incubation period. However, its high casefatality rate, potential for humantohuman transmission and propensity to be associated with hospitalbased transmission is both concerning and a fertile source for hysteria 31,32. Article pdf available february 2015 with 5,147 reads. The ebola virus causes ebola virus disease evd, or sim ply ebola, in. Fda announced today the approval of ervebo, the first fdaapproved vaccine for the prevention of ebola virus disease evd, caused by zaire ebolavirus in individuals 18 years of age and older.
August 2016 the new england journal of medicine article on the scale and growth of the epidemic, origins of human infection in west africa, the effect of interventions, and preparation for future outbreaks. Ebola virus disease evd is a lifethreatening viral disease with a fatality rate ranging from around 30% to 90%. Socioeconomic impact of ebola virus disease in west. The forecast of the number of cases does not exceed the current capacity to. Health emergency information and risk assessment 2 health emergency information and risk assessment as this is a rapidly changing situation, the reported number of cases and deaths, contacts being monitored. The 2014 ebola virus disease evd outbreak in west africa is the longest, largest, deadliest. Early detection, rapid patient isolation, contact tracing, and the ongoing vaccination programme should sufficiently control the outbreak. Ebola virus infection associated with transmission from survivors. The first outbreak occurred in the democratic republic of congo formerly zaire in a village near the ebola river, which gave the virus its name. The journal published its first ebola article in 1995, volume 1, issue number 3. Thirtyfour outbreaks have been reported in africa since it. It assembles heterogenous, filamentous, enveloped virus particles containing a negativesense, singlestranded rna genome packaged within a helical nucleocapsid nc. The viruses that cause evd are located mainly in subsaharan africa. Ebola ebola virus diseases ebola hemorrhagic fever epidemiology diagnosis.
Ebola virus, a rna virus, was discovered in 1976 as zaire ebolavirus and currently is responsible for outbreak in the west africa. Introduction ebola virus disease evd is one of the deadliest haemorrhagic fevers affecting humans and nonhuman primates. Five distinct species of ebola virus have been isolated from various epidemics, mainly in african countries, with the exception of the reston virus that originated in the philippines. The mucinliked region of the ebola virus envelope play a significant role in viral infection in nonhuman primates and. Probing into the factors that led to the widespread outbreak, setting forth plans to counter evd cases in developing countries, and devising definitive measures to limit the spread of the disease are essential steps that must be. Structural dissection of ebola virus and its assembly. Signs and symptoms typically start between two days and three weeks after contracting the virus with a fever, sore throat, muscular pain, and headaches. Ebola virus disease evd is a rare and deadly disease in people and nonhuman primates. An ebola epidemic has been growing in africa since mid2018. Ebola virus polymerase chain reaction testing on cerebral spinal fluid was negative. An epidemic of ebola virus disease is occurring in western africa on a scale not seen before.
Ebola virus disease among children in west africa pdf, 453kb the new england journal of medicine, march 2015. Background context sierra leone is one of three countries in the mano river union to suffer from the worst recorded ebola outbreak since the disease was first diagnosed in 1976 in the democratic republic of congo. Please use one of the following formats to cite this article in your essay, paper or report. The previous declarations were for the devastating ebola outbreak in west africa in 20142016 that took lives of more than 1 people, spread of zika virus in latin america, 2009 swine flu epidemic and for polio in 2014. Advancements in the therapy of ebola virus disease hiewa othman dyary1, heshu sulaiman rahman1,2,3, hemn hassan othman1,2, rasedee abdullah3, max stanley chartrand4 1college of veterinar y medicine, university of sulaimani, kurdistan region, northern iraq 2college of health sciences, department of medical laborator y sciences, komar university of science and. Remdesivir and chloroquine effectively inhibit the. People can get evd through direct contact with an infected animal bat or nonhuman primate or a sick or dead person infected with ebola virus. Severe meningoencephalitis in a case of ebola virus.
Ebola disease is a severe, often fatal illness in humans. Ebola virus latest news information updated on april. On 11 november, european regulators approved a vaccine that has already helped to control deadly outbreaks of the virus the first time any immunization. Since the initial discovery of zaire and sudan ebola virus in 1976, the ebola viruses have been responsible for severe hemorrhagic fever outbreaks.
Here we describe the clinical course and mri findings of a case of evd with sequential multiorgan failure, including severe meningoencephalitis, despite optimal. The expanding epidemic of ebola virus disease in the eastern democratic republic of congo drc has entered its second year despite courageous efforts by congolese and international colleagues. Thirtyfour outbreaks have been reported in africa since it was first. Analysis of the short and mediumterm costs of the ebola epidemic should spur governments of nonaffected countries to act quickly to put in place preventive measures. The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals and then spreads in the human population through. Ebola virus disease is rare and represents a miniscule fraction of the major infectious diseases burden in africa. List of books and articles about ebola online research. As an effective and readily deployable technical approach, sdinactivated plasma transfusions might even be proposed as the standard of care. The virus is a member of the filoviridae family genus ebolavirus. It is currently under clinical development for the treatment of ebola virus infection. Ebola, the killer virus infectious diseases of poverty full text.
The continued spread is facilitated by insufficient medical facilities, poor sanitation, travel, and unsafe burial practices. Treatment of ebola virus infection with antibodies from. It weakened the already fragile guinean health system. Outbreak of ebola virus disease in the democratic republic. This article highlights the epidemiology, clinical features, diagnosis. The ongoing ebola virus outbreak in the democratic republic of the congo has similar epidemiological features to previous ebola virus disease outbreaks. Ebola virus is a highly pathogenic filovirus causing severe hemorrhagic fever with high mortality rates. An unusual type of virus has periodically led to outbreaks of a devastating infection where people may bleed to death the ebola virus, seen here in a colorized transmission electron micrograph, has a distinct shape.
Ebola virus disease evd has mostly affected economically deprived countries as limited resources adversely affect a countrys infrastructure and administration. Ebola, the killer virus infectious diseases of poverty. The ebola virus has spread across several western africa countries, adding a significant financial burden to their health systems and economies. Introduction to ebola virus disease world health organization. The index case in this outbreak has not yet been identified and epidemiologic investigations are ongoing, including laboratory testing.
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