HEALTH ZONE: 10 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE DEADLY EBOLA VIRUS
The Ebola Virus is spreading rapidly across West Africa and has caused over 600 deaths since the first reported case in February… 1 Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), formerly known as Ebola haemorrhagic fever, is a severe, often fatal illness in humans. 2 EVD outbreaks have a case fatality rate of up to 90% meaning 9 out of 10 people who contract the disease are likely to die 3 The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission. 4 Ebola can be contracted through direct contact (through broken skin or mucous membranes) with the blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected people including semen and vaginal fluid. 5 Contact with the corpse of a diseased person can also lead to infection with the virus. 6 The symptoms of Ebola include fever, intense weakness, muscle pain, headache and sore throat. 7 The incubation period, that is, the time interval from infection with the virus to ons...