Question

Ebola haemorrhagic fever belongs to a group of diseases called “emerging disease”. Emerging diseases are first seen in less developed countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo. Discuss factors that explain the emergence of new diseases including Ebola haemorrhagic in these countries.

Answer 1

Ebola virus was first discovered in 1976 near the Ebola River in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo. Since then, the virus has been infecting people from time to time, leading to outbreaks in several African countries. Ebola is considered an emerging infectious disease. Some 300 people in each country became infected.

The Ebola virus causes an acute, serious illness which is often fatal if untreated. EVD first appeared in 1976 in 2 simultaneous outbreaks, one in what is now Nzara, South Sudan, and the other in Yambuku, DRC. The latter occurred in a village near the Ebola River, from which the disease takes its name.

The 2014–2016 outbreak in West Africa was the largest Ebola outbreak since the virus was first discovered in 1976. The outbreak started in Guinea and then moved across land borders to Sierra Leone and Liberia. The current 2018-2019 outbreak in eastern DRC is highly complex, with insecurity adversely affecting public health response activities.

The virus family Filoviridae includes three genera: Cuevavirus, Marburgvirus, and Ebolavirus. Within the genus Ebolavirus, six species have been identified: Zaire, Bundibugyo, Sudan, Taï Forest, Reston and Bombali. The virus causing the current outbreak in DRC and the 2014–2016 West African outbreak belongs to the Zaire ebolavirus species.

The World Health Organization warned in its 2007 report that infectious diseases are emerging at a rate that has not been seen before. Since the 1970s, about 40 infectious diseases have been discovered, including SARS, MERS, Ebola, chikungunya, avian flu, swine flu and, most recently, Zika.

With people traveling much more frequently and far greater distances than in the past, living in more densely populated areas, and coming into closer contact with wild animals, the potential for emerging infectious diseases to spread rapidly and cause global epidemics is a major concern.

FACTORS THAT EXPLAIN EMERGENCE OF NEW DISEASES-

• Microbial adaptation and change

• Economic development and land use

• Human demographics and behavior

• International travel and commerce

• Technology and industry

• Breakdown of public health measures

• Intent to harm

• Human susceptibility to infection

• Changing ecosystems

Also these include ecological, environmental, or demographic factors that place people at increased contact with a previously unfamiliar microbe or its natural host or promote dissemination. These factors are increasing in prevalence; this increase, together with the ongoing evolution of viral and microbial variants and selection for drug resistance, suggests that infections will continue to emerge and probably increase and emphasizes the urgent need for effective surveillance and control.The diversity of infectious disease threats currently facing humanity is unprecedented because of the remarkable emergence and reemergence of pathogens worldwide. Because of population mobility, globalization of commerce and the food supply, and the effects of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, infections in the developing world must be addressed to prevent infections in industrialized countries. Because pathogens do not recognize national boundaries, the rapidity with which individuals can circumnavigate the globe incubating infections makes the control of communicable diseases an enormous challenge for governments as well as for the public and primary health care systems. A global strategy for dealing with infectious disease threats must be developed and implemented as soon as possible.