WHO declared that Ebola outbreak in guinea comes to an end

WHO declared that the Ebola outbreak in guinea comes to an end

 

Ebola, also known as Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) or Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever (EHF), is a viral fever in humans and other primates caused by the Ebola virus. Signs and symptoms usually begin within two days to three weeks after contracting the virus. Symptoms include high fever, muscle pain, sore throat, and headache.

Ebola outbreak in guinea comes to an end

The World Health Organization officially announced the end of the second Ebola outbreak. The second outbreak took place in Guinea and it was declared in February and claimed 12 lives.

16 cases were confirmed, and seven probable infections were counted by WHO. During the 2013-16 epidemic in which the Ebola death rate was more than 11,300 people, mainly in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.

However, the recent outbreak took the lives of 12 people. "I am honored to declare the end of the Ebola outbreak in Guinea," said Alfred, a WHO Ki-Zerbo official, at a ceremony in the southeastern region of Nzerekore, where the disease emerged in late January.

The outbreak ended on Friday, weeks after the last person was declared cured on May 8, a senior health ministry official told AFP. Health Minister Remy Lamah on behalf of the head of state, President Alpha Conde also stated that the Ebola outbreak in Guinea has ended.

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About 200 people attended the event on Saturday at a Ministry of Health building, including local religious and community leaders.

"We must also thank the communities that have helped overcome the disease," said Ki-Zerbo of the WHO. The sheer hostility measures to control Ebola infection resulted in the death of some people which were attacked by tribes in southeast Guinea. They even killed some government officials.

This time, "community commitment, effective public health measures and the proper use of vaccines" are key to overcoming the Ebola virus outbreak, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement. WHO delivered around 24,000 and 11,000 doses of vaccine to Guinea and High-risk people were given its shot, including more than 2,800 front-line workers.

"We defeated the Ebola pandemic, but let's stick with it," read a banner displayed at the ceremony on Saturday. "We need to watch out for a possible resurgence and ensure the Ebola pandemic experience spreads to other health threats like COVID-19," said WHO Director for Africa Matshidiso Moeti. 

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in a statement that genetic sequencing showed links between the previous Ebola outbreak and the most recent Ebola outbreak 2021. 

Transmission of the Ebola virus in humans

The deadly virus is often transmitted from wildlife to humans and can then be transmitted from person to person. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), people were initially infected with the Ebola virus through contact with an infected animal. 

Animals categorized by the CDC or WHO are typically non-human primates (monkeys, monkeys) or fruit bats that are capable of spreading the virus. Once transmitted to humans, it can be transmitted from one person to another and affect thousands of people.

In humans, the virus can spread when an uninfected person comes into direct contact with blood or body fluids such as saliva, breast milk, semen, urine, sweat from someone who has been infected with Ebola or who has died. Transmission is contact with objects that are used by an infected person or simply contact with infected animals.

The CDC has highlighted that even after the person has recovered from Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), there is some residual virus in a man's semen that can also be passed on to his partner through any type of physical intimacy. 

Ebola in India

The WHO has described the 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak in West Africa as the largest Ebola outbreak since it was first discovered. The outbreak, which began in Guinea, later spread to Sierra Leone and Liberia. In 2014 Kerala was also at risk of transmission of Ebola in India as many people from infected areas of the African subcontinent visited India.