Hmmmm, Greetings
In the past few weeks I have voluntered my self with one of the MDG programmes to help create awareness and precaution on the virus called Ebola and also on my blog.
The Ebola virus disease (EVD) that
has wreaked havoc across Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria is
considered "a severe, often fatal illness in humans" by the World
Health Organisation (WHO).
It weakens the immune system and
causes bleeding inside and outside the body. In fact, it puts even health
workers at risk if they are properly protected.
Previously known as Ebola
haemorrhagic fever, Ebola was first reported way back in 1976 in Nzara, Sudan
and Democratic Republic of Congo.
Ebola is a highly contagious virus that spreads
easily through contact with an infected people’s body fluids. Ebola is
only contagious when a person is sick.
The origin of the virus is unknown, but it may have
come from fruit bats (Pteropodidae). The illness affects humans and
nonhuman primates (monkeys, gorillas, and chimpanzees).
Up to nine out of ten infected people may die depending on the type of virus.
People can recover especially if they receive medical care early in the sickness.
There is no medicine available to cure Ebola.
I will frame this post in line with the questions we have
been asked recently.
11. Should we be worried?
We should be worried enough to inform ourselves appropriately but we must not
panic. The people most at risk at the moment are healthcare workers and family
members caring for ill patients that may have been exposed to the index case,
or caring for other returned patients from Sierra Leone, Liberia or Guinea.
Specific efforts are going at the moment targeting these two groups. They must
follow the infection control guidelines that I presume have been issued to them
“religiously”. If you do not fall into any of these categories, please keep
yourself informed of the general picture, take normal precautions and go about
daily life. If you are caring for anyone with fever, body aches etc, please
continue to care for the patient with compassion. The most important question
to ask is if there has been contact with any of the nine known cases or a
recent travel history to the 3 most affected countries; Guinea, Liberia or
Sierra Leone. If this is the case, please call the helpline 0800ebolahelp.
Remember to continue taking precautions against other communicable diseases;
use a bed net against malaria, condoms to prevent STIs and HIV, boil your water
– a cholera outbreak is going on in Plateau State, and if you are coughing for
more than 2 weeks, see your doctor; TB killed approximately 27,000 people in
Nigeria last year.
22. How is the virus spread?
The virus is spread by contact with body fluids (blood, sweat, semen, saliva)
of an infected and sick person. There is no evidence that it can be spread by
air, water, or vectors such as mosquitoes or flies. People who are well cannot
transmit Ebola. So, it is actually not an easily transmissible virus and proper
adherence to infection control principles will protect most people from getting
the virus. Next time you visit your doctor or nurse and he/she tries to give
you an injection without gloves on – insist on their wearing gloves and report
him/her to the appropriate medical/nursing council, and change your care
provider. No ifs, no buts. The most important thing now is to break the chain
of transmission – the first patient in Nigeria infected 8 others, if we
continue at that rate of transmission – we are in big trouble. We must ensure
that these nine do not infect any more, and the main way to do this is through
effective and consistent implementation of infection control measures.
33. Should we stop eating meat?
The “jump” of the virus from an animal host (we still do not know the host
animal(s) for sure) to humans is an extremely rare event. Once this happens,
the most likely subsequent source of infection is human-to-human transmission.
Heating kills the virus so all cooked meat is safe; yes, including suya. The
most important risk at the moment is from humans infected with the virus and not
animals!
44. Can prayer cure the virus?
No – God has given us brains – He expects us to use them. If you suspect anyone
or you seek for medical attention
55. Is Government doing enough to contain the
disease?
They are doing the best they can, given the circumstances. A lot of support is
now being received from the World Health Organisation, the US Centres for
Disease Control and other partners. There are many Nigerians and International
colleagues working for these organisations that are rapidly scaling up the
response. Could we have been better prepared? Maybe – but this is not the
appropriate time to discuss this. We must all rally around the incredibly brave
colleagues that are on the frontline of the response now.
66. Who is actually leading the Nigerian response?
The response is being led by the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control, a
directorate under the Department of Public Health of the Federal Ministry of
Health. As Nigeria is a Federal Republic, the states also have a leading role
to play. The responsibilities for the provision of care are poorly delineated
by the Nigerian constitution. A National Health Bill that will solve this has
been pending between the National Assembly and the president for over eight
years.
77. Why are African patients not being given the
experimental medicines being used on the two American survivors?
First, every country has the option of developing its own scientific capacity
in drug development, therefore they can use these drugs as they deem fit. We
could ask what new compounds have been developed by the Nigerian Institute for
Medical Research (NIMR) and the Nigerian Institute for Pharmaceutical Research
(NIPRD) since their inception, but again, that is a question for another day.
Secondly there are very difficult ethical issues around using experimental
treatments. Many Nigerians will remember the consequences of the use of an
unlicensed medicine during a meningitis outbreak in Kano by Pfizer in 1996.
Discussions are going on at the moment, led by WHO on how access to these
experimental medicines can be scaled up, but it will not happen overnight as we
still do not know for sure that they made a difference for the two Americans.
Remember 10 – 40% of all those infected will survive.
8. Hope of Vaccine
There is no proven vaccine to
cure Ebola. But many doses of an experimental Ebola vaccine have been
developed at the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg, Canada.
The WHO has approved using the untested vaccine, calling it ethical to
use it at such times.
As Dr. Marie-PauleKieny, an assistant
director-general at WHO said in a press conference, "If there are drugs
that can save lives... shouldn't we use them to save lives?" But she
added, "(It is) very important to not give false hope to anybody that
Ebola can be treated now. This is absolutely not the case."
9. What
is your most important advice?
Do not panic. Dealing with the outbreak itself is hard enough; dealing with
panicking public will be disastrous. The outbreak can be contained by doing
“simple” things diligently and consequently.
Finally this is the best time to adopt the lifestyle of wellness because at the moment we are all exposed and compromised. The best you can do for your self and your family is to boost your immune system by taking fruits and vegetables that will increase your body nutrients and help fight against any form of viral disease including which you can become immune to if your immune system is high and strong.
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