Abstract

The Ebola virus disease is a severe hemorrhagic fever that affects humans and other primates. Ebola virus, the causative agent of the disease, is transmitted to humans from wild animals and is highly contagious and aggressive with an estimated fatality rate to be around 50%. Since 1976, 11 outbreaks of Ebola virus disease have been reported in total, affecting mostly sub-Saharan Africa, while the most recent ongoing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has more than 3000 reported cases and 72 deaths. Although an effective vaccine against Ebola virus disease has become available, no targeted treatment with proven efficacy upon infection is developed. Herein, we review the epidemiology of Ebola virus and the current situation in terms of prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of the disease.

Keywords

Ebola virus; Infectious disease; Epidemiology; Treatment

Published in

Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology
2022, volume: 1339, pages: 131-137
Book title: GeNeDis 2020 : genetics and neurodegenerative diseases
ISBN: 978-3-030-78786-8, eISBN: 978-3-030-78787-5
Publisher: Springer

Conference

4th World Congress on Genetics, Geriatrics and Neurodegenerative Diseases Research (GeNeDis 2020), 201008-201011 (online)

Authors' information