Ebola

The WHO recently reported that there have been at least 600 cases of Ebola Haemorrhagic fever and 360 deaths in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia. The epidemic began in March and has been complicated by major medical infrastructure challenges and a sense of mistrust towards healthcare workers going to Sierra Leone and Guinea, The WHO reports that community members have thrown stones at health care workers trying to investigate the outbreak.

What is Ebola?

Ebola virus is a virus that belongs to a group that causes ‘Viral Hemorrhagic Fever’. The most deadly strain is designated the ‘Zaire’ strain which seems to be able to evade the immune system and kill the very cells that are created to defend the body against a viral infection, the White Blood Cells.

Symptoms

The virus is fast acting and begins much like any other viral fever with.. fever, body aches and severe fatigue. That makes the disease even tougher to identify since its initial symptoms are so vague. As time progresses the infection interferes with the blood’s ability to coagulate and prevent bleeding, leading to the more famous symptoms of bleeding from the eyes, nose, mouth and other openings. These late stage symptoms eventually lead to organ failure and death in most cases.

Treatment and Vaccine Research

It is important to note that SOME people do naturally survive the infection. With the rest, IV fluids, blood transfusions and other modern interventions can help survive an outbreak.

Currently the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) in the United States and other agencies around the World are trying to formulate more effective drugs and treatment regimes to battle an active infection. This is concurrent with a World-wide push to create effective vaccines for Humans and Chimpanzees. Vaccinating chimps would help eliminate the natural reservoir in the areas where the virus is endemic (like West Africa).