EBOLA

 With over 1,700 people suspected to have been infected so far, nations across the globe are  witnessing the spread of the serious disease Ebola

 Since its outbreak in Guinea last December, the Ebola virus has spread to adjoining West African countries — Liberia, Nigeria, Ghana and Sierra Leone.

The disease referred to as  Ebola hemorrhagic fever  is caused by Ebola virus. 

Fruit bats and monkeys are believed to be the original carriers of the virus; however, the carriers are supposedly unaffected by the organism. The virus spreads through the blood or body fluids of the carrier. It can also spread to any human who comes into contact with the blood or body fluids of the infected person.

 One can contract the virus by just wearing the clothes worn by an infected person.

But Ebola is not a wholly unknown quantity; it was first identified in Sudan as early as 1976. In 2007, there was a minor outbreak of Ebola in Congo and Uganda.

Its symptoms are quite similar to that of other flu— fatigue, fever, headaches, joint, muscle and abdominal pain. From the time one contracts the virus, it may take eight to 10 days on an average for the symptoms to become apparent. Until such time, though the infected person may not show symptoms, he still carries a very high risk of transmitting it to others.

At present there is neither a drug to cure Ebola nor vaccines to prevent contraction of the disease. Antibiotics to treat the symptoms have been the only life-line for infected patients till date. Patients are also being administered anti-coagulants to avert blood-clotting and given adequate fluids and electrolytes to prevent dehydration.