A regional centre is being set up in Guinea to coordinate the response to the worst-ever outbreak of Ebola that has killed hundreds of people in West Africa, the World Health Organisation said Friday.
The haemorrhagic fever sweeping through Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone has left an estimated 539 people dead, according to the latest WHO figures.
Tracking and treating the disease has been a challenge as rural populations are often highly mistrustful of foreign doctors and don't follow their advice.
Traditional practices which include touching the bodies at their funerals have also contributed to the spread of the virus.
"The sub-regional centre will be responsible for ensuring effective use and deployment of limited and scarce, but highly critical resources based on prioritisation and agreed objectives," the WHO said in a statement.
Medical charity Doctors Without Borders, known by its French initials MSF, said last week the outbreak was "out of control", with more than 60 hotspots.
MSF and the UN health agency have said the outbreak is expected to continue for several months.
However the WHO said Friday that transmission appeared to have slowed in worst-hit Guinea, with only one new case reported in the past week.
A total of 309 people are confirmed or suspected to have died of Ebola in the west African nation where the epidemic broke out in February.
The largest number of new cases and deaths attributed to Ebola and reported this week came out of Sierra Leone, where another 32 people fell sick and 15 died.
Liberia has had 142 cases, 88 of whom have died and Sierra Leone 337 case of Ebola and 142 deaths.
The WHO said it did not recommend any travel or trade restrictions be applied to the three countries.
Ebola is a form of haemorrhagic fever which has several species and can be deadly in up to 90 percent of cases.
It can fell victims within days, causing severe fever and muscle pain, vomiting and diarrhoea—and in some cases, organ failure and unstoppable bleeding.
Ebola is believed to be carried by animals hunted for meat, notably bats.
It spreads among humans via bodily fluids including sweat, meaning you can get sick from simply touching an infected person. With no vaccine, patients believed to have caught the virus have to be isolated to prevent further contagion.
The outbreak is the first in west Africa, and the largest since Ebola first emerged in 1976 in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Explore further: Death toll in W.African Ebola outbreak rises to 518, WHO reports
© 2014 AFP
Medical Xpress on facebook
Related Stories
Death toll in W.African Ebola outbreak rises to 518, WHO reports
Jul 08, 2014
The number of people believed to have died from Ebola in west Africa has jumped to 518, the World Health Organization said Tuesday.
Death toll in W.African Ebola outbreak rises to 467: WHO
Jul 01, 2014
The number of people believed to have died from Ebola in west Africa has risen sharply to 467, the World Health Organisation said Tuesday.
Risk of Ebola spread in west Africa, WHO warns
Jun 28, 2014
The World Health Organization has warned that Ebola could spread beyond hard-hit Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone to neighbouring nations, but insisted that travel bans were not the answer.
Sierra Leone steps up measures to tackle Ebola outbreak
Jun 20, 2014
Sierra Leone, one of three neighbouring west African countries facing an Ebola epidemic, has stepped up measures to fight the highly contagious and deadly disease, the health minister has said.
W. African nations begin crisis talks as Ebola spreads (Update)
Jul 02, 2014
Health ministers from across western Africa met on Wednesday to plan "drastic action" against the world's deadliest-ever Ebola epidemic as dozens of new cases continued to emerge.
Recommended for you
Cholera threatens thousands in South Sudan: agency
28 minutes ago
(The aid group Save the Children says an outbreak of cholera is putting thousands of lives at risk in parts of violence-hit South Sudan.
Study shows significant increase in antibiotic use across the world
2 hours ago
Global use of antibiotics is surging, according to Princeton University researchers who have conducted a broad assessment of antibiotic consumption around the world.
World's most advanced dengue vaccine candidate shows promise in phase 3 trial
6 hours ago
The first dengue vaccine candidate (CYD-TDV) to reach phase 3 clinical testing has shown moderate protection (56%) against the disease in Asian children, according to new research published in The Lancet.
Novel treatment for drug-resistant tuberculosis shows promise, but concerns for patient safety remain
6 hours ago
In a viewpoint published this week in The Lancet, the Community Research Advisors Group (CRAG) argue that research into bedaquiline – a new drug, fast tracked for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) – should procee ...
Injected vaccine could help eradicate polio
13 hours ago
Re-introducing a type of polio vaccine that fell out of favour in the 1960s could hasten eradication of the disease, according to new research.
Cost of expensive medication in dialysis catheters may be offset by reduced complications
15 hours ago
Using an expensive agent to prevent blood clots in kidney failure patients' dialysis catheters may turn out to be less costly overall due to its ability to reduce medical complications, according to a study appearing in an ...
User comments
© Medical Xpress 2011-2014, Science X network
A regional centre is being set up in Guinea to coordinate the response to the worst-ever outbreak of Ebola that has killed hundreds of people in West Africa, the World Health Organisation said Friday.
The haemorrhagic fever sweeping through Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone has left an estimated 539 people dead, according to the latest WHO figures.
Tracking and treating the disease has been a challenge as rural populations are often highly mistrustful of foreign doctors and don't follow their advice.
Traditional practices which include touching the bodies at their funerals have also contributed to the spread of the virus.
"The sub-regional centre will be responsible for ensuring effective use and deployment of limited and scarce, but highly critical resources based on prioritisation and agreed objectives," the WHO said in a statement.
Medical charity Doctors Without Borders, known by its French initials MSF, said last week the outbreak was "out of control", with more than 60 hotspots.
MSF and the UN health agency have said the outbreak is expected to continue for several months.
However the WHO said Friday that transmission appeared to have slowed in worst-hit Guinea, with only one new case reported in the past week.
A total of 309 people are confirmed or suspected to have died of Ebola in the west African nation where the epidemic broke out in February.
The largest number of new cases and deaths attributed to Ebola and reported this week came out of Sierra Leone, where another 32 people fell sick and 15 died.
Liberia has had 142 cases, 88 of whom have died and Sierra Leone 337 case of Ebola and 142 deaths.
The WHO said it did not recommend any travel or trade restrictions be applied to the three countries.
Ebola is a form of haemorrhagic fever which has several species and can be deadly in up to 90 percent of cases.
It can fell victims within days, causing severe fever and muscle pain, vomiting and diarrhoea—and in some cases, organ failure and unstoppable bleeding.
Ebola is believed to be carried by animals hunted for meat, notably bats.
It spreads among humans via bodily fluids including sweat, meaning you can get sick from simply touching an infected person. With no vaccine, patients believed to have caught the virus have to be isolated to prevent further contagion.
The outbreak is the first in west Africa, and the largest since Ebola first emerged in 1976 in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Explore further: Death toll in W.African Ebola outbreak rises to 518, WHO reports
© 2014 AFP
Medical Xpress on facebook
Related Stories
Death toll in W.African Ebola outbreak rises to 518, WHO reports
Jul 08, 2014
The number of people believed to have died from Ebola in west Africa has jumped to 518, the World Health Organization said Tuesday.
Death toll in W.African Ebola outbreak rises to 467: WHO
Jul 01, 2014
The number of people believed to have died from Ebola in west Africa has risen sharply to 467, the World Health Organisation said Tuesday.
Risk of Ebola spread in west Africa, WHO warns
Jun 28, 2014
The World Health Organization has warned that Ebola could spread beyond hard-hit Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone to neighbouring nations, but insisted that travel bans were not the answer.
Sierra Leone steps up measures to tackle Ebola outbreak
Jun 20, 2014
Sierra Leone, one of three neighbouring west African countries facing an Ebola epidemic, has stepped up measures to fight the highly contagious and deadly disease, the health minister has said.
W. African nations begin crisis talks as Ebola spreads (Update)
Jul 02, 2014
Health ministers from across western Africa met on Wednesday to plan "drastic action" against the world's deadliest-ever Ebola epidemic as dozens of new cases continued to emerge.
Recommended for you
Cholera threatens thousands in South Sudan: agency
28 minutes ago
(The aid group Save the Children says an outbreak of cholera is putting thousands of lives at risk in parts of violence-hit South Sudan.
Study shows significant increase in antibiotic use across the world
2 hours ago
Global use of antibiotics is surging, according to Princeton University researchers who have conducted a broad assessment of antibiotic consumption around the world.
World's most advanced dengue vaccine candidate shows promise in phase 3 trial
6 hours ago
The first dengue vaccine candidate (CYD-TDV) to reach phase 3 clinical testing has shown moderate protection (56%) against the disease in Asian children, according to new research published in The Lancet.
Novel treatment for drug-resistant tuberculosis shows promise, but concerns for patient safety remain
6 hours ago
In a viewpoint published this week in The Lancet, the Community Research Advisors Group (CRAG) argue that research into bedaquiline – a new drug, fast tracked for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) – should procee ...
Injected vaccine could help eradicate polio
13 hours ago
Re-introducing a type of polio vaccine that fell out of favour in the 1960s could hasten eradication of the disease, according to new research.
Cost of expensive medication in dialysis catheters may be offset by reduced complications
15 hours ago
Using an expensive agent to prevent blood clots in kidney failure patients' dialysis catheters may turn out to be less costly overall due to its ability to reduce medical complications, according to a study appearing in an ...
User comments
© Medical Xpress 2011-2014, Science X network
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar