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Epidemiology essay on outbreak of ebola
Epidemiology essay on outbreak of ebola
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Epidemic Outbreaks in Africa
One of the most devastating and frightening diseases to encroach on unsuspecting African communities is the deadly Ebola virus. This virus was believed to have first reared its ugly head in the mid 1970s with outbreaks in both the Sudan and Zaire. These epidemics resulted in more than 600 cases of people infected, and had alarming case fatality rates as high as 90 percent.1 Such profound numbers drove fear and panic into the hearts of the local population, with people confused and frightened about losing the entire members of their family. Yet, despite the severity of the 1970s outbreak, Ebola managed to remain fairly quiet for the next several years until a group of outbreaks occurred in the mid 1990s in northeast Gabon as well as Zaire. Several years later conveying the same sense of palpable fear, Ebola once again, entered the stage, this time around in Uganda in the year 2000.2
As a student volunteer working for a charitable health organization in Gulu, Uganda that summer, the reality of death and the effects of the disease consumed my thoughts as I pondered the risks I was taking each passing day by just being in the middle of an epidemic. Ten new suspected cases were diagnosed daily at the local hospital, and the medical staff were challenged by the overwhelming workload. Surgical supplies ran low as the need to constantly dispose of protective wear after each exposure occurred, due to the high contagious nature of the rapidly spreading virus. The smell of bleach and disinfectant pierced our nostrils, as our rubber boots and gear were sprayed down after any contact with the infected. The scene conveyed a sense of despair and uncertainty, as people questioned what had they done to...
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5 Simpson, 11.
6 Ibid.
7 Smyth.
8 Vidal, 5.
9 Ibid.
10 Ibid., 6.
11 Ibid., 8.
Works Cited:
Associated Press. "Ebola Virus Outbreak Kills 37" The Guardian, 18 October 2000: B7+
McCarthy, Michael. "Ebola Outbreak Continues in Uganda," The Lancet 356 (2000): Science & Medicine section.
Recer, Paul. "Sick Animals May be Source of Ebola" Associated Press Online, 15 January 2004: 1+
Simpson, D.I.H. "Marburg and Ebola Virus Infections: A Guide for Their Diagnosis, Management, and Control," WHO Offset Publication 36 (1997): 5-27
Smyth, Garry. "Six days in Hell: City Man Films Ebola Virus," St. John's Telegram (Newfoundland), 14 November 2000: sec. news; p.1. Front.
Vidal, John. "Life: Mostly They Died, Ebola Devastates Whole Villages, But We Do Not Know Where it Comes From" The Guardian (London), 17 June 2004: 4-8.
The proliferation of crises around the world has led to a prominent increase in the amount of humanitarian aid needed. Humanitarian aid work represents not only compassion, but commitment to support innocent populations that have experienced sudden or on-going tragedies. Some of these tragedies include: malnutrition, genocide, diseases, torture, poverty, war, natural disasters, government negligence, and unfortunately much more. There is no doubt that these tragedies are some of the world’s toughest problems to solve as they are often complex, multifaceted and require diligence and patience. For this reason, being a humanitarian aid worker is more than a profession, it is a lifestyle that requires a sharp distinction between one’s work and
The novel, “The Hot Zone”, by Richard Preston, is an extraordinary tale about a virus called the Ebola virus. The author interviews a number of different people that all had encounters with the virus and records their stories. He is very interested by what they tell him and throughout the novel he is always seeking to find more information about it. There were many different encounters in this book but in my summary I am going to explain the ones that interested me the most.
...victims of war and genocide, it is admirable to see his courage to remain engaged in service to his fellow human. With a bold, yet pragmatic vision, Orbinski is unconcerned with seemingly intractable problems of finding drugs for the poorest AIDS victims. The book illustrates his desire to get the job done without bravado and grand statements. Although the book was painful to read, it takes he reader to the extreme of human suffering. Nevertheless, it also inspires with its reflections of humanitarianism and the ingenuity brought to its implementation. It is heartening to know James Orbinski can inspire students in both the arts and sciences as they set out on their careers. Since after all he’s seen, Orbinski remain optimistic, not cynical, and committed to action. Do give this book to any students in your life, after you have read it yourself.
For those infected, skin glistens with sweat, hair hangs from the weight of dampness, and faces flush with fever. He shows the dead with a pale green cast, staring straight ahead with vomit drying to their faces. To illustrate the virus’ spread, he frames scenes at hand-level showing fingers pushing elevator buttons, gripping poles on public transportation, passing water glasses, and signing paperwork. This element of cinematography highlights society’s vulnerability to the invisibility of the virus due to its rapid spread via common
Ibeji, Mike. “Black Death: Political and Social Changes.” BBC News. BBC, 17 Feb. 2011. SIRS
The viruses are spread in many different ways in the novel, but all are due to human mistakes. One of the most common forms of errors found in the medical field is the recycling of soiled equipment. The repeated use of dirty medical equipment is found commonly in the poor regions of the world where resources are limited and fundings are bound. This is an example of the errors the human race performs that lead to disaster.
Lots of reason has been observed of causing the incidence of Ebola. One of the main reasons is human contact with the fruit bats of the Pteropodidae family (WHO Media Centre, 2014), which are Ebola
Ebola, a virus which acquires its name from the Ebola River (located in Zaire, Africa), first emerged in September 1976, when it erupted simultaneously in 55 villages near the headwaters of the river. It seemed to come out of nowhere, and resulted in the deaths of nine out of every ten victims. Although it originated over 20 years ago, it still remains as a fear among African citizens, where the virus has reappeared occasionally in parts of the continent. In fact, and outbreak of the Ebola virus has been reported in Kampala, Uganda just recently, and is still a problem to this very day. Ebola causes severe viral hemorrhagic fevers in humans and monkeys, and has a 90 % fatality rate. Though there is no cure for the disease, researchers have found limited medical possibilities to help prevent one from catching this horrible virus.
The Ebola virus and Marburg virus are the two known members of the Filovirus family. Marburg is a relative of the Ebola virus. The four strains of Ebola are Ebola Zaire, Ebola Sudan, Ebola Reston, and Ebola Tai. Each one is named after the location where it was discovered. These filoviruses cause hemorrhagic fever, which is actually what kills victims of the Ebola virus. Hemorrhagic fever is defined as a group of viral aerosol infections, characterized by fever, chills, headache, fatigue, and respiratory symptoms. This is followed by capillary hemorrhages, and, in severe infection, kidney failure, hypotension, and, possibly, death. The incubation period for Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever ranges from 2-21 days. The blood fails to clot and patients may bleed from injection sites and into the gastrointestinal tract, skin and internal organs. Massive destruction of the liver is one distinct symptom of Ebola. This virus does in ten days what it takes AIDS ten years to do. It also requires bio-safety level four containment, the highest and most dangerous level. HIV the virus that causes AIDS requires only a bio-safety level of two. In reported outbreaks, 50%-90% of cases have been fatal.
In 1976 the first two Ebola outbreaks were recorded. In Zaire and western Sudan five hundred and fifty people reported the horrible disease. Of the five hundred and fifty reported three hundred and forty innocent people died. Again in 1995 Ebola reportedly broke out in Zaire, this time infecting over two hundred and killing one hundred and sixty. (Bib4, Musilam, 1)
Marburg virus belongs to the genus Marburgvirus in the family Filoviridae, and causes a grave hemorrhagic fever, known as Marburg hemorrhagic fever (MHF), in twain humans and nonhuman primates. Basic Safety measures for medical personnel and others who are taking care of presumed individuals who may be contaminated with Marburg disease. Marburg Virus, Akin to the more widely known Ebola hemorrhagic fever, MHF is portrayed by systemic viral replication, lowering the body’s normal immune response to invasion by foreign substances and abnormal inflammatory responses. Ebola and Marburg Virus are very similar in many ways Marburg virus was introduced first in the 1960’s. These pathological features of the disease subsidize to a numerous of systemic dysfunctions including
According to the World Health Organization, the reason why there are many Ebola outbreaks in West Africa is because they have “very weak health systems, lacking human and infrastructural resources, having only recently emerged from long periods of conflict and instability.” A hum...
Sex Trafficking Inside the Business of Modern Slavery Kara Siddharth, Columbia University Press. 2010. 320 pp
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