As terrifying as Ebola is, the virus has been controlled in the past, and can be again. The current crisis, which threatens an 11-nation region of Africa that includes the continent's giant, Nigeria, is not a biological or medical one so much as it is political. The three nations in Ebola's thrall need technical support from outsiders but will not succeed in stopping the virus until each nation's leaders embrace effective governance.
The virus, which can kill within days, spreads by exposure to infected bodily fluids and other secretions. The symptoms include severe fever, muscle pain, weakness, vomiting and diarrhoea. In some cases, bleeding can be unstoppable and the organs could be shut down. The virus can even spread to those who handle the dead body of the infected person, without proper protection. Urgent action is required to halt the spread of this deadly virus because it has the potential to spread across borders.
With early medical intervention, chances of survival can be increased but no such medicine or vaccine exists that could be used to treat this deadly disease.
Difficulty in accessing remote areas will lead to the sufferers going untreated. There is also fear that the sufferers have a mistrust towards Western medicine or are superstitious.
Reducing the risk of Ebola infection in people
In the absence of effective treatment and a human vaccine,
raising awareness of the risk factors for Ebola infection and the
protective measures individuals can take is the only way to reduce human
infection and death.
In Africa, during EVD outbreaks, educational public health messages for risk reduction should focus on several factors:
- Reducing the risk of wildlife-to-human transmission from contact
with infected fruit bats or monkeys/apes and the consumption of their
raw meat. Animals should be handled with gloves and other appropriate
protective clothing. Animal products (blood and meat) should be
thoroughly cooked before consumption.
- Reducing the risk of human-to-human transmission in the community
arising from direct or close contact with infected patients,
particularly with their bodily fluids. Close physical contact with Ebola
patients should be avoided. Gloves and appropriate personal protective
equipment should be worn when taking care of ill patients at home.
Regular hand washing is required after visiting patients in hospital, as
well as after taking care of patients at home.
- Communities affected by Ebola should inform the population about
the nature of the disease and about outbreak containment measures,
including burial of the dead. People who have died from Ebola should be
promptly and safely buried.
Pig farms in Africa can play a role in the amplification of
infection because of the presence of fruit bats on these farms.
Appropriate biosecurity measures should be in place to limit
transmission. For RESTV (Reston ebolavirus), educational public health messages should focus
on reducing the risk of pig-to-human transmission as a result of unsafe
animal husbandry and slaughtering practices, and unsafe consumption of
fresh blood, raw milk or animal tissue. Gloves and other appropriate
protective clothing should be worn when handling sick animals or their
tissues and when slaughtering animals. In regions where RESTV has been
reported in pigs, all animal products (blood, meat and milk) should be
thoroughly cooked before eating.
Controlling infection in health-care settings
Human-to-human transmission of the Ebola virus is primarily
associated with direct or indirect contact with blood and body fluids.
Transmission to health-care workers has been reported when appropriate
infection control measures have not been observed.
It is not always possible to identify patients with EBV early
because initial symptoms may be non-specific. For this reason, it is
important that health-care workers apply standard precautions
consistently with all patients – regardless of their diagnosis – in all
work practices at all times. These include basic hand hygiene,
respiratory hygiene, the use of personal protective equipment (according
to the risk of splashes or other contact with infected materials), safe
injection practices and safe burial practices.
Health-care workers caring for patients with suspected or
confirmed Ebola virus should apply, in addition to standard precautions,
other infection control measures to avoid any exposure to the patient’s
blood and body fluids and direct unprotected contact with the possibly
contaminated environment. When in close contact (within 1 metre) of
patients with EBV, health-care workers should wear face protection (a
face shield or a medical mask and goggles), a clean, non-sterile
long-sleeved gown, and gloves (sterile gloves for some procedures).
Laboratory workers are also at risk. Samples taken from
suspected human and animal Ebola cases for diagnosis should be handled
by trained staff and processed in suitably equipped laboratories.
