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The health authorities in Uganda recently announced Ebola virus disease (Ebola virus disease) in Mubindi district, Uganda, located in the central part of the country.
Stady: Uganda announces an outbreak of Ebola virus disease. Image Credit: Crevis / Shutterstock.com
What is Ebola virus disease?
Ebola virus disease is a serious disease of humans and other primates that can be fatal if left untreated. Ebola virus was first reported in 1976 in two simultaneous outbreaks in Nzara, South Sudan, Yambuku, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Ebola virus disease is named after the Ebola River, which passed near a village where the virus was first detected.
The Ebola virus belongs to the family Filoviridae, which includes three genera: Ebolavirus, Marburgvirus, and Cuevavirus. Fruit bats are a natural host for the Ebola virus.
This virus can be transmitted through direct contact with the bodily fluids of infected animals to humans. Thereafter, human-to-human transmission through direct contact, such as when a healthy person is exposed to an infected person’s blood, mucous membranes, broken skin, and other bodily fluids, has been reported.
The incubation period for the Ebola virus ranges from two to twenty-one days. Common symptoms of Ebola virus disease include fever, muscle aches, headache, sore throat, fatigue, vomiting, rash, diarrhea, high levels of liver enzymes, and low numbers of white blood cells and platelets. Vaccines, monoclonal antibodies, and medications are currently available to treat Ebola virus disease.
Ebola virus disease outbreak in Uganda
Uganda Virus Research Institute confirmed Ebola infection after testing a sample obtained from a 24-year-old man from Ngabanu village, Madudo sub-district of Mubindi district, who later died. After this event, the National Rapid Response Team investigated six suspicious deaths in the same area. There are seven confirmed cases of Ebola virus disease, three suspected cases, and one death.
Dr Machidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa, stated that after more than a decade, Uganda is witnessing an outbreak of Ebola virus in Sudan. WHO is working closely with national health authorities to determine the source of this outbreak.
WHO is also supporting Uganda with all available resources to manage and prevent further outbreaks. For example, the organization has deployed staff to the affected area and provided supplies to help patients who have already contracted Ebola virus disease. Tents were also provided to isolate the sick from the general population.
Effective Ebola control is no stranger to Uganda. Thanks to her experience, measures have been taken to quickly detect the virus, and we can rely on this knowledge to stop the spread of infection.”
A total of seven Ebola virus outbreaks have been recorded in Sudan, four of which occurred in Uganda and three in Sudan. Uganda previously experienced an Ebola outbreak in Sudan in 2012; However, in 2019, Zaire experienced an outbreak of Ebola virus imported from neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo.
Vaccination against Ebola virus disease
The Sudan strain of Ebola differs from the Zaire strain. Ervebo vaccine is highly effective in controlling the recent Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; But this vaccine was previously effective against the Zaire Ebola virus, not the Sudan strain.
Another Ebola vaccine made by Johnson and Johnson has shown effectiveness against the virus. However, the effectivenessSpecifically against the Sudanese dynasty has not yet been determined.
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