ABSTRACT
Since Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) was first identified in 1976 in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo, and despite the numerous outbreaks recorded to date, rarely has an epidemic origin been identified. Indeed, among the twenty-one most documented EVD outbreaks in Africa, an index case has been identified four times, and hypothesized in only two other instances. The initial steps of emergence and spread of a virus are critical in the development of a potential outbreak and need to be thoroughly dissected and understood in order to improve on preventative strategies. In the current West African outbreak of EVD, a unique index case has been identified, pinpointing the geographical origin of the epidemic in Guinea. Herein, we provide an accounting of events that serve as the footprint of EVD emergence in Sierra Leone and a road map for risk mitigation fueled by lessons learned.
FUNDING STATEMENT
This material is based upon work supported by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) under the Academic Engagement Program (AEP) Contract No. HDTRA1-14-C-0104 and under the Cooperative and Biological Engagement program (CBEP) Contract No. HDTRA1-12-C-0024. The results and ideas presented here do not necessarily represent the point of view of the funders and the US government agencies.
INTRODUCTION
Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) was first medically recorded in 1976 when the virus emerged in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo. The identification of this new disease, which presented similarly to that of Marburg Disease, led to the recognition of Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers (VHF) as a nosological entity. Despite the many studies conducted on EVD to date, rarely has the epidemic origin (the primary infectious event) been identified. Indeed, among the twenty-one most documented outbreaks of EVD in Africa, an index case was identified four times and hypothesized in two other instances1,2,3,4,5,6 .
The difficulty of pinpointing the ports of viral entry into the human population mainly relies on the fact that these outbreaks often occur in remote regions that lack experienced epidemiologists which lead to delayed and unsuccessful investigations. Given the complexity of the task, it is remarkable that, in the current West African outbreak, a unique index case has been identified, defining with near certainty the geographic origin of the epidemic in Guinea. Identification of the first infected human was the result of intensive forensic work performed by a multidisciplinary team, which acted quickly to address the emergency during the initial onset of the epidemic2.
While apprehending the mechanisms of emergence of a zoonotic virus from an animal host to humans is critical to develop preventive strategies, a deep understanding of the immediate progression within the human population to the point of recognition by the local public health system is essential to improve on national surveillance and accelerate detection and thereby response to a nascent epidemic. Invaluable lessons can be drawn through thorough dissection of the early events, when an outbreak runs unnoticed by the health system. Ascertaining the initial spread of the virus from one human host to another is therefore critical to identify strategies to improve future outbreak response efforts.
Herein, we provide an accounting of events that serve as the footprint of EVD emergence in Sierra Leone.