Ebola (Ebola virus disease)

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What is it about ?

Ebola or Ebola virus disease is a disease caused by a virus, the Ebola virus. It is mainly present in Africa, where it is spread by various species of bats, in particular via their excrement. Monkeys and antelopes can also be infected.

Humans are infected by eating meat from these infected animals. Then it can infect other people with its blood and body fluids (saliva, vomit, stool, urine, sweat, semen and vaginal fluids). Contamination can occur from person to person (direct contamination) or by material soiled by blood or secretions (indirect contamination). Contamination through sneezing or coughing (airborne contamination) has not been demonstrated.

Out of 10 sick people, 4 to 9 die from the disease, it depends on the hygienic conditions and the availability of quality medical care.

Where and how often does it occur?

(Virus disease) Ebola usually occurs in the form of epidemics, with a few dozen to several hundred people infected. In 2014, during the epidemic in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, thousands of people were infected; it was the first time that so many people had been infected.

How to recognize it?

After getting infected with the virus, you don’t get sick immediately. It takes an average of a week before you notice the first symptoms. This is called the incubation period. This is the time it takes for the virus to develop in the body.

The first symptoms resemble those of the flu: fever, headache and muscle pain. Bleeding then occurs in various parts of the body due to inflammation of the small blood vessels (“hemorrhagic fever”). At this point, the person also has stomach pain, and has diarrhea. She must also vomit. This is when contagiousness is highest.

The state of health deteriorates rapidly due to dehydration. Half of the patients die from organ failure (renal failure, heart failure, liver failure, etc.).

How will your doctor diagnose the disease?

The doctor will think about Ebola in everyone who has been exposed to the virus. That is, people who have been in a contaminated area and have been in contact with confirmed cases of Ebola or with materials used in their treatment and care.

In those who have had unprotected sexual contact with someone who has contracted Ebola in the past three months, a blood test will be required to detect the virus.
If symptoms are present, the laboratory may culture from bodily fluids.

The temperature should be taken twice a day for 21 days. If the temperature reaches 38.6 ° C or higher, hospitalization and confinement are required.

What can you do ?

  • Avoid traveling to a contaminated area.
    You will find travel advice on the websites of the Institute of Tropical Medicine and the Belgian Federal Public Service for Foreign Affairs (see ‘Find out more?).
  • If you have been to a contaminated area or have had contact with someone with Ebola, tell the doctor.
  • If you have no symptoms, you should take your temperature for 21 days at home. There is no reason to confine yourself.
  • On the other hand, from 38.6 ° C, it is necessary to go directly to the hospital for observation because it is possible that you are contaminated.
  • If the blood test shows that you do not have Ebola, you can go home.

What can your doctor do?

The doctor will do two things: treat the person and prevent the spread.

  • There is no cure for the virus. The treatment is therefore exclusively there as a support: preventing dehydration, maintaining the functions of the heart, liver and kidneys, ensuring food by infusion, etc.
  • Containment and strict hygiene measures (wearing special clothing, gloves, etc.) are the best guidelines to follow to prevent the spread of the virus. The hospitals have reached mutual agreements on this matter: the possible cases of Ebola will be distributed among several selected hospitals.

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