Ebola virus spreads in four more Liberian counties
Presstv.ir
Thu Jul 17, 2014
New cases of Ebola virus have been found in four additional counties in Liberia, raising the number of affected counties to seven out of a total of 15.
The four counties are located in the west, center and east of Liberia, while the virus has affected mainly western parts of the county.
Ebola has spread through several West African countries, including Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, since its latest outbreak in February. The death toll from the virus has surpassed 600 despite efforts by regional and international health experts to contain the epidemic.
Guinea is the worst-hit country with more than 500 people losing their lives.
Liberia has reported 105 deaths since the outbreak there in May, while 142 have lost their lives in Sierra Leone.
There is currently no known cure for Ebola, a form of hemorrhagic fever whose symptoms are diarrhea, vomiting and bleeding.
The virus spreads through direct contact with infected blood, feces or sweat. It can be also spread through sexual contact or the unprotected handling of contaminated corpses.
Ebola was first discovered in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1976 in an outbreak that killed 280 people.
It remains one of the world’s most virulent diseases, which kills between 25 to 90 percent of those who fall sick.
