Ebola virus causes Ebola virus disease (EVD). It is one of the most dangerous diseases among the other viral diseases, with a fatality rate around 50 percent. It is an acute illness which is too fatal if left untreated. It is considered as a deadly disease because it spreads throughout the body and damages the immune system and other vital organs. Simultaneously, it destroys the blood clotting cells and reduces their count, which causes abnormal bleeding.
Ebola disease is not a contagious disease. It spreads to people by skin contact or by bodily fluids of infected animals such as the monkey or a chimpanzee. Then it travels from person to person.
Ebola viruses which belong to a family of virus, ‘Filoviridae’ are the causes of ebola. These viruses cause ebola hemorrhagic fever (bleeding fever) inside and outside the body. Ebola virus is found in chimps, African monkeys, and other nonhuman primates.
The symptoms of Ebola are presented within 8 to 10 days after the exposure or may take three weeks to appear.
The foremost prominent symptom would be extreme fatigue; other ebola virus symptoms would include:
The risk of getting Ebola increases if you are:
The fatal complications of Ebola virus disease are:
Early symptoms of Ebola would be similar to that of common diseases such as flu, malaria, and typhoid fever.
Your doctor would order for blood tests that would reveal the antibodies of Ebola virus. At the same time, these tests would reveal the white blood cell counts, platelet count, the status of the liver enzymes, and abnormal coagulation factor levels.
Ebola virus does not have a complete cure or any preventive vaccines. The ebola treatment is purely based on comforting the patients and management of the ebola disease symptoms.
The supportive care measures may include:
It is not enough if you understand the ebola virus symptoms and treatment to be safe. You can be more proactive and protect yourself from the effects of Ebola virus, by following the below steps:
