Ebola, a member of the hemorrhagic fever viruses, is one of more than 10 viruses capable of causing viral hemorrhagic fever syndrome. Specifically, Ebola belongs in the Filoviridae family, along with the Marburg virus.
Illness typically develops between two to 21 days after initial exposure. Fever, fatigue, body aches, rashes, nausea, abdominal pain and headaches are but a few of the symptoms those infected feel.
As the disease progresses, bleeding under the skin and from the mouth, ears, nose and eyes are quite characteristic. Death often results one to two weeks after the beginning of the symptoms, and cause of death is usually from multi-organ system failure or shock. The fatality rate for those infected with Ebola is 50 to 90 percent. It is not currently understood why some people are able to recover from the Ebola infection, while others cannot.
The U.S. Food and Drug administration has yet to develop an antiviral medication to prevent or eradicate the Ebola virus.
Ebola is transmitted through direct contact with infected blood, body fluids or tissues. Because of this, Ebola is known to spread through families and those living in close contact with each other. People can also be infected through contact with objects such as unclean needles which have been used on infected people.
First identified in what is now called the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1976, several different species of Ebola have now been identified across the globe.
The exact origin and natural habitat of the Ebola virus remains unknown. However, it is believed that Ebola could be animal-borne and possibly native to the African continent.
There are tests available to diagnose Ebola, but a quick diagnoses is difficult because early symptoms (fever, rash, headaches, etc) are not unique to the Ebola virus. By the time it is easy to recognize the disease, many of those infected are on their way to complete organ failure.
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has worked with the World Health Organization (WHO) to develop guidelines for controlling the infection rates of Ebola and the other hemorrhagic fevers, particularly in Africa. This manual, titled “Infection Control for Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers in the African Health Care Setting”, describes how to recognize cases and how to prevent further cases by warning the local population.
Ebola should certainly not be thought of as strictly an African disease. In 1989 Ebola was introduced into Virginia, Texas, and Pennsylvania by monkeys imported from the Philippines. Four workers were infected but did not become ill. Two more cases, in 1990 and 1996, caused illness in Virginia and Texas, but no human deaths occurred.
Scientists and researchers continue to work on developing containment, vaccine and treatment strategies for the Ebola virus, but are often stymied by Ebola’s erratic behavior.