As the new outbreak of Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo has become the second-worst in history, after the West African epidemic just a few years ago (2014-2016) that killed 11 000 people, many people might be thinking why is the virus back at all?
Ebola was first discovered in 1976 in Congo, and it's a virus that causes a hemorrhagic fever. It survives in forest animals such as bats, apes, and monkeys. And people often hunt these animals for food in those areas of Africa. And of course, after an outbreak has started, it also starts spreading among people, spreading via blood, diarrhea, vomit, and sweat. It can also spread sexually. Ebola kills 50 to 90 percent of the infected people. The sooner the patients are treated, the more hope there is that their bodies will be capable of fighting the infection.
So far there are no known cures for Ebola, but there are some experimental drugs for it, although they haven't been tested enough yet to know if they actually work. Also some vaccines are still being tested, so they could still be called experimental as well.
According to WHO, the current outbreak has already killed 242 and around the same amount are still alive but infected. What makes containing and treating Ebola more difficult in Congo is the fact that it's a war zone.
What is Ebola?
Ebola was first discovered in 1976 in Congo, and it's a virus that causes a hemorrhagic fever. It survives in forest animals such as bats, apes, and monkeys. And people often hunt these animals for food in those areas of Africa. And of course, after an outbreak has started, it also starts spreading among people, spreading via blood, diarrhea, vomit, and sweat. It can also spread sexually. Ebola kills 50 to 90 percent of the infected people. The sooner the patients are treated, the more hope there is that their bodies will be capable of fighting the infection.
So far there are no known cures for Ebola, but there are some experimental drugs for it, although they haven't been tested enough yet to know if they actually work. Also some vaccines are still being tested, so they could still be called experimental as well.
According to WHO, the current outbreak has already killed 242 and around the same amount are still alive but infected. What makes containing and treating Ebola more difficult in Congo is the fact that it's a war zone.
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