As of 23 June, In total 599 cases of Ebola virus disease and 369 deaths have been reported across the three countries( Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone).
Guinea: 390 cases of Ebola virus disease and 270 deaths
Liberia: 51 cases of Ebola virus disease and 33 deaths
Sierra Leone: 158 cases of Ebola virus disease and 66 deaths .
New development:
WHO and its partners continue to provide the necessary technical expertise to the Ministries of Health to stop community and health facility transmission of the virus.
This includes, among others, a high-level advocacy meeting with the governments of the three affected countries to enhance coordination, information management, and communication. The WHO Regional Director, in consultation with the Director General, has established a temporary function of WHO sub-regional EVD outbreak response Coordinator to directly support the affected countries. The Coordinator will be based in Conakry, Guinea.
In addition, WHO is planning a high-level meeting for the Ministers of Health in the sub-region to be held 2–3 July in Accra, Ghana, with the objective of ensuring increased political commitment and cross-border collaboration for EVD response activities among the countries in the sub-region.
WHO, GOARN, and other partners are also closely supporting the Ministries of Health in deploying additional experts in the various specialities (epidemiology, social mobilization, case management, data management, and logistics, among others) to support the EVD outbreak response efforts.
Ebola out of control?
MSF and WHO work hand in hand to contain the outbreak , including in isolation wards. We share their concerns and frustrations. Much work has been done by the countries themselves, international partners ( including WHO and MSF) to contain it and much still needs to be done.
WHO is concerned as the outbreak continues to spread. Population movement across borders increase the potential for rapid spread of Ebola to new areas, there is a need for international coordination and collaboration.
More than 100 public health experts are working with WHO and its Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN) partners, assisting ministries of health and other partners in the 3 countries. This work includes supporting clinical management of patients, contact tracing, disease surveillance, laboratory work, logistics, as well as communications ( including social mobilisation) and sharing of information to help people protect themselves from the disease.
This is a complex outbreak involving multiple locations in 3 countries with a lot of cross-border movement among the communities. The large number of cases in a large city such as Conakry, and the new cases near Monrovia, makes this one of the most challenging Ebola outbreaks ever.
The Ebola outbreak is not over. New cases appear daily in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia.
WHO is working with a range of partners to contain the outbreak. The outbreak will be considered over in a country after 42 days (2 incubation periods) have passed without a confirmed case (precisely, 42 days since that last confirmed case is placed in isolation – so that s/he cannot infect others).
In addition to caring for current patients, new infections must be prevented in order to contain the outbreak. Raising awareness of the risk factors for infection and the protective measures that should be taken is the only way to stop transmission and subsequent deaths. Close unprotected physical contact with Ebola patients should be avoided, and those who have died from the disease should be promptly and safely buried.
This is the first time an Ebola outbreak has spread across borders to 3 countries making it the largest geographical spread of Ebola and the deadliest outbreak with 599 cases, including 369 deaths as of June 23. The previous largest outbreak occurred in Gulu, Uganda in 2000 with a total of 425 cases, including 224 deaths. So far, this is not the longest running Ebola outbreak.
Basic facts about Ebola
The Ebola virus causes severe Ebola Virus disease (EVD) outbreaks in humans. EVD is a severe acute viral illness often characterized by a sudden onset of fever, intense weakness, muscle pain, headache and sore throat. This is followed by vomiting, diarrhoea, rash, impaired kidney and liver function, and in some cases, both internal and external bleeding. Ebola Virus disease outbreaks have a case fatality rate of between 60 and 90%. The incubation period (interval from infection to onset of symptoms) varies between 2 to 21 days.
The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission.
It is important to stress that during this event the Ebola virus spreads in the human population through human- to – human transmission. The infection occurs when a healthy person comes into contact with body fluids (blood, sputum, semen, urine, etc) of an infected person or the deceased (notably during patient care at home or during funerals).
Severely ill patients require intensive supportive care. There is no licenced specific treatment or vaccine available for either people or animals at that time.
Ebola outbreaks occur primarily in remote villages in Central and West Africa, near tropical rainforests.
Following a question about GOARN: Global Outbreak Alert & Response Network
GOARN is a technical collaboration of existing institutions and networks who pool human and technical resources for the rapid identification, confirmation and response to outbreaks of international importance. The Network provides an operational framework to link this expertise and skill to keep the international community constantly alert to the threat of outbreaks and ready to respond. It was cerated in 2000 and has its Secretariat at WHO.
Partners
The Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network focuses technical and operational resources from scientific institutions in Member States, medical and surveillance initiatives, regional technical networks, networks of laboratories, United Nations organizations (e.g. UNICEF, UNHCR), the Red Cross (International Committee of the Red Cross, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and national societies) and international humanitarian nongovernmental organizations (e.g. Médecins sans Frontières, International Rescue Committee, Merlin and Epicentre). Participation is open to technical institutions, networks and organizations that have the capacity to contribute to international outbreak alert and response.
http://www.who.int/csr/outbreaknetwork/en/
Fadéla Chaib Communications Officer / WHO Spokesperson Department of Communications Director-General's Office World Health Organization