By All of the following information was considered up to date as of October 17, 2014:
Here is some clarification on terms being used. Let’s be clear: There is no Ebola outbreak in the U.S. We have three confirmed diagnoses thus far (sorry, four as of October 24). That is not an outbreak.
- Epidemic is a disease that quickly and severely affects a large number of people and then subsides. For example, take the Plague throughout the Middle Ages. It killed millions.
- Endemic is a disease that is continually present in an area and affects a relatively small number of people. For example, malaria is endemic in (or to) hot, moist climates.
- Pandemic is a widespread epidemic that may affect entire continents or even the world. The pandemic of 1918 ushered in a period of frequent epidemics of gradually diminishing severity. The Black Death in Europe and AIDS are pandemics rather than epidemics.
I found this video quite solid in regard to communicating the state of affairs surrounding the Ebola crisis: Ebola news coverage (Fox News)
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Here is speculation that has not been validated. I simply include these news stories for reference. Stay diligent by not believing everything presented. Do your own research.
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The following websites, sources and organizations are what I, as a professional, would consider valid and reliable. By that, I mean the information they are sharing and reporting is not biased and has scientific research, evidence and previous incidents as resources.
Validated resources:
Key facts from the World Health Organization
- Ebola virus disease (EVD), formerly known as Ebola hemorrhagic fever, is a severe, often fatal illness in humans.
- The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission.
- The average EVD case fatality rate is around 50%. Case fatality rates have varied from 25% to 90% in past outbreaks.
- The first EVD outbreaks occurred in remote villages in Central Africa, near tropical rainforests, but the most recent outbreak in west Africa has involved major urban as well as rural areas.
- Community engagement is key to successfully controlling outbreaks. Good outbreak control relies on applying a package of interventions, namely case management, surveillance and contact tracing, a good laboratory service, safe burials and social mobilization.
- Early supportive care with rehydration, symptomatic treatment improves survival. There is as yet no licensed treatment proven to neutralize the virus but a range of blood, immunological and drug therapies are under development.
- There are currently no licensed Ebola vaccines but 2 potential candidates are undergoing evaluation.
Chronology of Ebola outbreak history (CDC)
