Folia medica Cracoviensia
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Folia medica Cracoviensia · Jan 2014
ReviewThe determinants of spread of Ebola virus disease - an evidence from the past outbreak experiences.
The paper summarizes available evidence regarding the determinants of spread of Ebola virus disease, including health care and community related risk factors. It was observed that the level of uncertainty for the estimations is relatively high which may hinder to make some predictions for the future evolution of EVD outbreak. The natural history of EVD has shown that the disease may pose a problem to developed countries and may present a thread to individuals. Although observed modes of transmission mainly include direct contact and contaminated staff, high case fatality ratio and frequent contacts among individuals in developed countries are among determinants which may lead to the development of the EVD outbreak.
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Folia medica Cracoviensia · Jan 2014
ReviewEbola virus disease - pathogenesis, clinical presentation and management.
On March 2014 the WHO notified the outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in Guinea, and infection quickly spread to another West African countries including Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria. Current outbreak is the largest in the history, since discovery of the virus in 1976. Imported cases and infection among healthcare workers in Europe and United States have elucidated necessity of better education of medical staff. Clinicians must be familiar with clinical picture of EVD, differential diagnosis and therapeutic approach, as rapid diagnosis and prompt introduction of supportive therapy can have a significant impact on the survival.
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Folia medica Cracoviensia · Jan 2014
ReviewGeneral introduction into the Ebola virus biology and disease.
Epidemic of Ebola hemorrhagic fever which appeared in the countries of West Africa in 2014, is the largest outbreak which occurred so far. The virus causing this epidemic, Zaire Ebolavirus (ZEBOV), along with four other species of Ebolaviruses is classified to the genus Ebolavirus in the family Filoviridae. ⋯ Mortality is the result of multi-organ failure and severe bleeding complications. The aim of this review is to present the general characteristics of the virus and its biological properties, pathogenicity and epidemiology, with a focus on laboratory methods used in the diagnosis of these infections.
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The paper presents general information regarding descriptive epidemiology of Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreaks. Some observations have shown the decrease in case fatality ratio after several generations of patient-to-patient passage. An increase in the frequency of EVD outbreaks across decades was also noticed. The knowledge about the past outbreaks may provide crucial information about the evolution of EVD epidemic, which may be useful for future preventions.
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Folia medica Cracoviensia · Jan 2014
ReviewPharmacotherapy of Ebola hemorrhagic fever: a brief review of current status and future perspectives.
The 2014 outbreak clearly showed that Ebola viruses (EBOV) remain a substantial threat for public health. The mainstay of management of patients with Ebola disease is isolation of patients and use of strict barrier nursing procedures; the present treatment strategies are mainly symptomatic and supportive (fluid resuscitation, antypyretics, antidiarrheal drugs). ⋯ BCX4430, favipiravir). The scope of this article is to briefly review the most promising therapeutics for EHF, based on the data coming from rare clinical reports, studies on animals and results from in vitro models.