Ebola, previously known as Ebola hemorrhagic fever, is a rare and deadly disease.
Ebola viruses are found in several African countries. Ebola was first discovered in 1976 near the Ebola River in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Since then, outbreaks have appeared at irregular intervals in Africa.
The 2014 Ebola outbreak is the largest Ebola outbreak in history and the first Ebola outbreak in West Africa. This outbreak is the first Ebola epidemic the world has ever known – affecting multiple countries in West Africa.
Total Cases (As of September 21, 2014) (Updated September 25, 2014)
Total Case Count: 6263
Total Deaths: 2917
Laboratory Confirmed Cases: 3487
Cases by Country
1. Guinea
Total Case Count: 1022
Total Deaths: 635
Laboratory Confirmed Cases: 832
2. Liberia
Total Case Count: 3280
Total Deaths: 1677
Laboratory Confirmed Cases: 890
3. Nigeria
Total Case Count: 20
Total Case Deaths: 8
Laboratory Confirmed Cases: 19
4. Senegal
Total Case Count: 1
Total Case Deaths: 0
Laboratory Confirmed Cases: 1
5. Sierra Leone
Total Case Count: 1940
Total Case Deaths: 597
Laboratory Confirmed Cases: 1745
Symptoms of Ebola include:
Fever (greater than 38.6°C or 101.5°F)
Severe headache
Muscle pain
Weakness
Diarrhea
Vomiting
Abdominal (stomach) pain
Unexplained hemorrhage (bleeding or bruising)
Symptoms may appear anywhere from 2 to 21 days after exposure to Ebola, but the average is 8 to 10 days.
Recovery from Ebola depends on the patient’s immune response. People who recover from Ebola infection develop antibodies that last for at least 10 years.
Risk
All cases of human illness or death from Ebola have occurred in Africa.
Healthcare providers caring for Ebola patients and the family and friends in close contact with Ebola patients are at the highest risk of getting sick because they may come in contact with the blood or body fluids of sick patients. People also