Ebola warning as majority of cases going undetected while killer virus spreads
MORE than half Ebola cases are going undected as the killer virus spreads, scientists have warned.
By Liam Deacon
DailyStar.co.uk
14th June 2019
The virus “spills over” from bats and monkey when outbreaks begin, and in most cases, it is not detected when it enters the human population, according to a new study.
“We conclude that at least half of all spillover events have failed to be reported since EVD [Ebola Virus Disease] was first recognized,” the new paper says.
West Africa is currently experiencing the second worst outbreak in history, with the virus spreading across borders to Uganda just days ago.
So far, 2,000 people have been infected and 1,400 have died since beginning in August last year.
However, often it does not quite cause a medical emergency on the scale of the current epidemic.
“Knowing how often spillover occurs is an important step to help to understand when and why it occurs,” said Glennon, from the university’s Department of Veterinary Medicine.
“We have to understand the process of spillover if we want to prevent outbreaks from starting in the first place.”
The virus spreads among humans through contact with bodily fluids and is one of the most virulent tropical fevers – often killing within days.
But with most outbreaks confined to remote rural areas of central and western Africa, scientists believe many patients are never diagnosed or are misdiagnosed.
There have been at least 10 major outbreaks since Ebola’s discovery in 1976, and dozens of smaller ones.
The Rest…HERE
