Ebola… For several months now, the Internet has been full of reports about it, not a single television news release can do without them. Just a couple of months ago, it was considered a regional problem, and doctors assured that this disease would definitely not spread outside of Africa. Meanwhile, at least two US citizens have already become infected. A few more are hospitalized or are at home (under a ban on going out). So what is it, how to fight this disease, and how is Ebola transmitted? And are the chances of its appearance in Russia great? Employees of Rospotrebnadzor argue that the minimum. However, at present, students from African countries studying in our country are undergoing a special examination. And travel agencies were obliged to warn Russian tourists traveling to the "dark continent" in which countries the Ebola fever has already spread.
Virus
The disease is caused by the virus of the same name - the oldest form of life. It is an RNA molecule placed inspecial protective cover. This is the so-called filovirus. It penetrates into the cells of the human body and releases its gene material into the cytoplasm. As a result, the cell begins to reproduce the proteins necessary for the virus. They are needed for its reproduction. In most cases, the cell itself is destroyed.
The Ebola virus bypasses the body's defense mechanisms. It neutralizes the action of interferon - a substance responsible for combating external threats to the cell.
In general, viruses are amazing and mysterious organisms. They are on the border of living and non-living. After all, they do not have a metabolism, they do not move independently and can only function inside the cells of the host organism. Viruses are parasites. Until now, scientists cannot come to an unambiguous conclusion about their origin. And yet it is the most numerous kingdom. Viruses are everywhere. For example, in a spoonful of sea water there are about a million of them! Scientists agree on one thing: these carriers of genetic information arose a very, very long time ago. And their role in the evolution of living beings is great. After all, only in humans, almost a third of the genes are similar to the genes of viruses!
Hemorrhagic fever
That's the scientific name for Ebola. What does this term mean? All such diseases are viral. In general, it is the vascular cells that are affected. Hence the heavy bleeding. There are several types of hemorrhagic fevers, and they are all associated with different viruses. The latter endure eithernatural hosts (reservoirs), or intermediate living organisms. Hemorrhagic fevers are often carried by rodents such as field mice (for Ebola, fruit-eating bats).
This type of disease is very dangerous for humans, although vaccines have already been created for some. Often patients die from the development of infectious-toxic shock and failure of all organs. In the case of Ebola, also from significant blood loss.
Case history
The first case is believed to have occurred in 1976. The virus was identified in Zaire (Democratic Republic of the Congo). It happened in the area of the Ebola River. Hence the name. Ebola in Sudan then claimed the lives of one hundred and fifty-one people. Two hundred and eighty died in Zaire itself.
It is possible that local residents have been infected before. The latest study confirmed the presence of antibodies in the blood of seven percent of the population. This means that many have already been ill with this disease.
To date, more than thirty cases of Ebola infection have been recorded worldwide. In ninety per cent of cases, this happened on the African continent: nine countries have already been affected there. But some, such as, for example, Tunisia, Ebola has so far bypassed. It was infected twice in Russia, and both in laboratory conditions: the banal inaccuracy of employees led to deaths.
Relatively small outbreaks have occurred in the UK(1976 - 1 person was infected), the United States (1990 - 4 people) and the Philippines (in 1990 and 2008 a total of seven). Between 2000 and 2001, four hundred and twenty-five people were infected with the Sudanese Ebola virus in Uganda. It was the largest outbreak of the disease until 2014. During the last Zairian modification of the virus in Africa alone, more than seven thousand people have already been infected, half of them have died. What is the reason for this increase in the number of cases?
The story of the latest outbreak
It started in Guinea at the end of 2013. On December 26, 2013, a two-year-old boy named Emil died, followed a week later by his three-year-old sister. And how the first child became infected is still unknown. Then their next of kin began to die. Some are already in neighboring Sierra Lyon and Liberia. Why were these countries not ready? And why was the World He alth Organization forced to recognize a seemingly local problem as a threat on a global scale? New infections occur every day, and it is already clear how Ebola is transmitted between people, but will conventional methods be able to stop it?
Deep reasons
Poverty, hunger and poor medical conditions in the region, as well as a lack of public awareness, are the reasons pointed out by the WHO (World He alth Organization). But, perhaps, the main thing is human greed. Ebola is a serious and complex disease. But vaccines are already being developed for hemorrhagic fevers. But there is still no cure for Ebola. The thing is that its development requires serious efforts and large investments. But large pharmaceutical companies did not go for this, because the sales market was too narrow, and the vaccine or medicine would have been very expensive. And with a meager income level, the inhabitants of those African countries where Ebola usually appears, would hardly be able to buy it. Until a certain stage, research was carried out in one of the US military institutes, and even then in order to protect against Ebola in the event that someone is going to use it as a biological weapon. But after a couple of years, the financing of the project was also closed. However, now that it has become clear that it is not so easy to hide from a fever, the developed countries of the world have nevertheless joined in the work.
How is it transmitted to humans?
Since the disease is paradoxically little studied, one can only speculate who is its carrier. Most scientists believe that a species of bat is the natural reservoir for Ebola.
The last virus does no harm. These mice feed on fruit, which they bite into or drop pieces on the ground. And those, in turn, pick up primates, the virus for which is fatal. But no one can say for sure exactly how Ebola passes from animal to animal, and the ways of its transmission in the forest are also almost not studied. The latest outbreak of the disease threatens the extinction of the gorilla population in this region of Africa. How is Ebola transmitted to humans? It is known that the locals often eatthe meat of forest animals, including the brains of primates. In addition, due to large-scale deforestation, bats began to settle much closer to human habitation. Therefore, the fruits infected by them could be picked up or plucked by both adults and children.
How is Ebola transmitted among humans?
The virus is usually transmitted through human body fluids such as blood, saliva, and mucous membrane secretions. In addition, you can get infected through semen. The gates of the virus are lesions on the skin and mucous membranes.
So Ebola can only be contracted through direct contact with an infected person. To date, the transmission of the virus from person to person by airborne droplets has not been recorded. Yet fever is considered one of the most contagious diseases. Perhaps because it is also transmitted through the objects that people use.
Why are there so many sick people?
The main strategy for dealing with a deadly virus for which there is no cure is the strictest quarantine. The area where the outbreak occurred should have been completely closed. Obviously, they did not immediately decide to do this for ethical reasons. And when the fever spread to several countries, it became almost impossible. The next main reason for the huge rate of spread was the illiteracy of the local population and doctors. In the early stages, it is difficult to determine that this is Ebola - a fever whose symptoms resemble a severe form of the flu or malaria. Andonly when the patient begins to lose blood, there is a suspicion of hemorrhagic fever. Accurate diagnosis of the latter is possible only in a well-equipped laboratory.
In the first days and even weeks of the outbreak, patients were placed not in separate boxes, but in general tent camps. And there it was already spreading through not very accurate doctors from one patient to another. The number of people infected in this way is simply enormous. More than two hundred doctors died alone!
Local flavor
Another factor that has influenced the rate of the spread of the fever is illiteracy and poor awareness among residents. Only a few months later, people began to walk around the villages with loudspeakers and memos that told the population about precautions and symptoms of a terrible disease. Meanwhile, a third of all those infected are relatives and friends of those people who became infected at the very beginning. Local customs also played an important role here. In accordance with the latter, people gathered for the funeral of their relatives and became infected from corpses. As with the washing of the latter. The virus is transmitted from the body of a dead person for another month. Perhaps there are other reasons - Ebola is still rampant to this day.
Outbreak outlook
WHO claims that in the near future the growth in the number of cases in the region will be stopped. The main reason why Ebola is dangerous is the spread of the virus to other territories. For example, in Tunisia. Ebola has not yet reached there, but there, as in neighboring countries, it is already expected and very much feared. News of the latestdays - the US sends two thousand troops to fight the disease. How the soldiers will help to cope with the virus is clear: they will most likely have to “close” the territory.
Ebola Cure
Creating one or a vaccine in the near future, according to many scientists, is unlikely. The reason for this lies both in the insufficient knowledge of the virus, and in the absence of the necessary components. It is already clear that African countries themselves will not be able to create a vaccine. Hospitals do not even have enough beds for all the sick at the moment. At the same time, the world community is making incredible efforts: funds are being allocated, and virologists from all over the world are sent to fight a formidable disease.
How is fever treated now?
It is common knowledge that in an ongoing outbreak, death is possible in fifty percent of cases. Most patients die from the symptoms. This is a serious loss of blood, a state of shock, intoxication of the body and failure of all organs.
So now, if the diagnosis is Ebola, treatment is mostly supportive care. The patient is placed in a separate box, where he is injected intravenously with a nutrient solution. A person either gets better or dies. According to some reports, experimental drugs sometimes help, but they are not available to everyone. A few more words about the latter. Previously, it was forbidden and considered unethical to use experimental drugs for treatment that had not been adequately tested in humans. In the light of recent events inAfrica, the WHO already calls it essential.
Doctors began to transfuse the blood of those who had a fever, which in seven cases out of eight gave a positive result. However, these procedures were carried out already in the later stages. And it is not yet clear what caused the recovery: proteins from the blood of recovalents or immunity itself defeated the virus.
Symptoms
The latter appear between two days and three weeks after a person is infected with the virus. It is believed that until they appear, the disease is not transmitted.
Ebola (symptoms) starts abruptly. Moreover, the initial manifestations are nonspecific: high fever, weakness, headache, tonsillitis, diarrhea. Later, vomiting and a rash appear. Dehydration develops, chest pains occur. Almost half of the patients develop a rash. Then it is already possible with a high probability to assert that this is Ebola. These symptoms are specific. The eyes are filled with blood. Decreased kidney and liver function. Mucous membranes begin to bleed: gums, nose, gastrointestinal tract, vagina. The latter indicates a high probability of death. Usually patients die in the second week of the disease. If this does not happen within seven to sixteen days, the person recovers. After a disease, mental problems are possible for a long time, people lose a lot of weight, hair falls out.
How not to get infected?
Today, Ebola is a fever, the signs of which are probably already known to all the inhabitants of the African continent. How can you not get infected? Avoid visiting African countries during outbreaksdangerous disease. Avoid contact with sick people.
In addition, hemorrhagic fever (caused by other viruses against which there are already vaccines) can be contracted in our area. Agricultural workers should be especially careful, because these diseases are carried by field mice. Wash your hands thoroughly after working in the field. Do not eat on the ground and from the ground. And if after work you suddenly develop non-specific symptoms mentioned above (and they are usually similar in all hemorrhagic fevers), see a doctor immediately.
