The disease has so far affected more than 28,000 people.
On the 12th of January, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that West Africa was Ebola-free, as all of the channels of transmission had been stopped.
The disease has so far killed more than 11,300 people and infected over 28,500, in three countries.
The first announcement of this kind had been released to the press in May 2015. Unfortunately, two more flare-ups have since followed, until the last patient of Ebola was finally tested negative twice one month and a half ago. “Our work is not done and vigilance is necessary to prevent new outbreaks,” declared Margaret Chan yesterday.
The news of the recent death in Sierra Leone could mark the beginning of a new outbreak in one of the hardest-hit countries, alongside with Guinea and Liberia. All three countries had reported 0 cases for more than forty days.
Possible causes
Possible causes for the lesser outbreaks that have been reported since May have been found in the persistence of the virus in survivors after treatment. The virus disappears relatively quickly once treated, but can remain in the semen of a small number of male survivors for as long as 1 year, and can therefore be transmitted sexually.
“The risk of reintroduction of infection is diminishing as the virus gradually clears from the survivor population, but we still anticipate more flare-ups and must be prepared for them. A massive effort is underway to ensure robust prevention, surveillance and response capacity across all three countries by the end of March,” declared Dr Bruce Aylward, WHO’s Special Representative for the Ebola Response.
At the moment, all those engaged in the fight against Ebola are making sure that every patient has access to frequent screenings, so as to monitor the risk of new major scale outbreaks.
For more information, visit the WHO page on Ebola.
[Image: Athalia Christie]