Ebola fever: a description of the disease

Ebola fever refers to acute viral infections. The disease differs from others with high contagiousness, is accompanied by hemorrhagic syndrome, is difficult to cure, and very often ends with the patient's death.

The causative agent of the disease was first discovered in the region of the river Zaire (Ebola). Infection can spread rodents living near human dwellings. Virus infected people also pose a danger to others, as a sick person begins to spread the virus within three weeks after infection. In medicine, cases are described where secondary and tertiary infection occurred. Most of these phenomena were observed among hospital medical personnel. Ebola disease can also be transmitted through medical instruments that have been poorly sterilized.

Symptoms

Infection occurs through damaged skin or mucous membranes of the upper respiratory tract. In places where the virus enters, there are no visible changes. In the infected organism the infection spreads very quickly, which causes thrombohemorrhagic syndrome and intoxication. In a survey of the population that lives in endemic areas, about seven percent of people whose blood contains antibodies to the causative agent of infection have been identified. Thus, we can conclude about possible asymptomatic cases of the course of the disease, transferred in a mild form and not detected in time.

Ebola fever has an incubation period that lasts from a month to six weeks. The disease itself has much in common with the fever Marburg. Studies show that pathology has varying degrees of severity and the likelihood of death in different regions. This is due to the antigenic and biological characteristics of the pathogens.

At the first stages, Ebola fever is acute and accompanied by severe muscular and headache, diarrhea and pain syndrome in the abdomen.

Gradually, the initial symptoms are joined by a dry cough, pain in the chest region, having a stitching character. In addition, there are signs of concomitant dehydration. After a week of illness, a maculopapular rash appears on the skin, after the disappearance of which there is peeling.

Hemorrhagic syndrome in the pathology is expressed by nosebleeds, in addition, the blood is found in the vomit. Women develop uterine bleeding, and pregnancy ends in miscarriage. The results of a laboratory blood test show anemia, thrombocytopenia and neutrophilic leukocytosis. Death occurs most often in the second week of fever due to shock and bleeding.

Ebola fever: treatment and diagnosis

Patients should receive intensive care during pathology therapy. Patients should be in infectious specialized departments in separate boxes. To facilitate the condition, oral administration of electrolytes and intravenous solutions is prescribed. Also, plasma of convalescent patients is used. Use antitussive, antipyretics, antiemetics. Until now, despite all the efforts of scientists, the vaccine against the infection has not been found, and there are no effective methods of treatment.

Like other types of fever, diagnose the disease Ebola should be carried out by an infectious disease doctor. To identify the disease using laboratory methods of research: immunofluorescent and enzyme immunoassay, a general blood test. During fever, complications such as hemorrhagic, hypovolemic, or infectious toxic shock are possible .