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Ebola virus 2 (Click to select text)
The Ebola virus is a member of the virus family called Filoviridae. There are three strains of filoviruses: Ebola, Marburg, and Reston. All of these diseases are very fatal to monkeys and humans. The Ebola virus is airborne and can enter the body through any opening in the skin, especially cuts. Ebola has the ability to spread from cell to cell very quickly, and kills 50 to 90 % of human victims. The mortality rate in monkeys is currently unknown. Ebola, like HIV, is said to be spread to humans from monkeys, but no one knows exactly what the virus started from in the beginning. The Ebola virus is named for a river in Zaire , Africa where it was first detected. It first appeared in in 1976 in Zaire, followed by an out break in western Sudan almost immediately afterwards. The third out break in Sudan in 1979 was smaller with 22 deaths out of the 34 cases. The first outbreaks in Zaire and western Sudan were large resulting in 340 deaths out of the 550 cases. The most recent outbreak is in Kikwit, Zaire. The outbreak appears to have started with a patient who had surgery in Kikwit on April 10, 1995. Members of the patient's surgical team developed symptoms similar to those of a viral hemorrhagic fever disease. The symptoms of Ebola hemorrhagic fever begin 4 to 16 says after infection. Victims develop fever, chills, headaches, muscle aches, and loss of appetite. The patient will suffer vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pains, soar throat, and chest pain as the virus progresses. The blood fails to clot and patients may bleed from injection sites as well as into the gastrointestinal tract, skin, and internal organs. Bleeding from the eyes and lips have also have also been reported in many cases. Most victims bleed to death. The Ebola virus is spread through close contact with a person who is very ill with the disease. The spread from person to person usually occurs among hospital workers and family members who are caring for the patient. Transmission has also occurred from the result of reusing hypodermic needles in patients. Reusing needles is a common practice in developing countries where the health care system is under funded. Spreading of the disease has also been traced to the burial practices of some of the affected people and the disposal of their personal affects. Cases of Ebola have been reported all across the United States, but only in small numbers. Most of the U.S. cases have developed in patients after returning from Africa. Many other cases have been reported in monkeys that have been imported from Africa and the Philippines. Some large shipments have contained monkeys that have already died from the disease, leaving many more infected. In cases like this, all the animals must be destroyed, along with the cages and any other items that may have been shipped at the same time.
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