UN: Ebola outbreak could be controlled in three months

More than 4,000 people have died from the Ebola outbreak

The UN special envoy on Ebola says he hopes that the outbreak can be brought under control within three months.


David Nabarro told the BBC the number of Ebola cases was currently increasing exponentially, but greater community awareness would help contain the virus.

People were becoming aware that isolating those infected was the best way to prevent transmission, he added.

So far, there have been more than 8,300 confirmed and suspected cases of Ebola, and at least 4,033 deaths.

'Quite frightening'

Most fatalities - 4,024 - have occurred in the west African countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Cases have also been reported in Nigeria, Senegal, Spain and the US.

Mr Nabarro said that the number of new cases was "quite frightening", as the spread of the disease was currently accelerating.

At the beginning, many west African communities did not understand that the outbreak was an infectious disease, he said.

"I think we've got much better community involvement [now] which leads me to believe that getting it under control within the next three months is a reasonable target," he said.

"By under control I mean... the numbers of new cases each week diminishes compared with the previous week to the point where there is no new transmission."

The Ebola virus is spread by direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person or animal.

Meanwhile, New York's JFK airport began screening passengers from Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea for the Ebola virus on Saturday, in an attempt to stem the outbreak.

Passengers from those countries will have their temperatures taken and have to answer a series of questions.

It comes after the first person died of Ebola in Texas on Wednesday.

Ebola deaths: Confirmed, probable and suspected

How not to catch Ebola:

• Avoid direct contact with sick patients
• Wear goggles to protect eyes
• Clothing and clinical waste should be incinerated and any medical equipment that needs to be kept should be decontaminated
• People who recover from Ebola should abstain from sex or use condoms for three months
 

Why Ebola is so dangerous

 



Healthcare workers are among those most at risk of catching Ebola

The Ebola outbreak in West Africa is the world's deadliest to date and the World Health Organization has declared an international health emergency as more than 3,850 people have died of the virus in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria this year. 

What is Ebola? 

Ebola is a viral illness of which the initial symptoms can include a sudden fever, intense weakness, muscle pain and a sore throat, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). And that is just the beginning: subsequent stages are vomiting, diarrhoea and - in some cases - both internal and external bleeding. 

The disease infects humans through close contact with infected animals, including chimpanzees, fruit bats and forest antelope. 

It then spreads between humans by direct contact with infected blood, bodily fluids or organs, or indirectly through contact with contaminated environments. Even funerals of Ebola victims can be a risk, if mourners have direct contact with the body of the deceased. 

The incubation period can last from two days to three weeks, and diagnosis is difficult. The human disease has so far been mostly limited to Africa, although one strain has cropped up in the Philippines. 

Healthcare workers are at risk if they treat patients without taking the right precautions to avoid infection. People are infectious as long as their blood and secretions contain the virus - in some cases, up to seven weeks after they recover.  

Where does it strike? 

Ebola outbreaks occur primarily in remote villages in Central and West Africa, near tropical rainforests, says the WHO. 

Bushmeat - from animals such as bats, antelopes, porcupines and monkeys - is a prized delicacy in much of West Africa but can also be a source of Ebola

It was first discovered in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1976 since when it has mostly affected countries further east, such as Uganda and Sudan.  

Ebola deaths since 1976

 

This year's outbreak is unusual because it started in Guinea, which has never before been affected, and it quickly spread to urban areas



Figures accurate from 4-6 October, depending on country. Death toll in Liberia includes probable, suspect and confirmed cases, while in Sierra Leone and Guinea only confirmed cases are shown

 

From Nzerekore, a remote area of south-eastern Guinea, the virus spread to the capital, Conakry, and neighbouring Liberia and Sierra Leone. 

 There have been 20 cases of Ebola being imported by someone travelling from a country of widespread transmission to Nigeria, with eight confirmed deaths. The US and Senegal have both confirmed one case each. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in September that the virus might have been successfully contained in Nigeria and Senegal. 

In October, a nurse in Spain became the first person to contract the deadly virus outside of West Africa, after treating two Spanish missionaries who had eventually died of Ebola in Madrid.