Containing Ebola virus in Nigeria

He reportedly collapsed at the airport and was taken to the First Consultant Medical Hospital in Obalende, Lagos, where he died of the disease five days later. The Nigerian doctor who treated him is now confirmed to have been infected with the virus. The Federal Ministry of Health said on Monday that three other health […]

He reportedly collapsed at the airport and was taken to the First Consultant Medical Hospital in Obalende, Lagos, where he died of the disease five days later. The Nigerian doctor who treated him is now confirmed to have been infected with the virus. The Federal Ministry of Health said on Monday that three other health workers, who attended to Mr Sawyer, have also shown symptoms of the disease.
While it is uncertain how many people came into contact with Patrick Sawyer the day he boarded African Sky (ASky) flight in Liberia, it is now certain that with his death in Lagos and the infection of one of our doctors, the Ebola virus has scaled the boarders of four different countries (Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo and Benin) and flew for about three hours by air, crossing more than 2,000km to arrive on the shores of Nigeria. This was in spite of efforts to contain the disease by the World Health Organization (WHO) and other international health bodies. Ebola has so far claimed hundreds of lives in the West African countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
Since the arrival of the virus in Nigeria, health officials have been making efforts to trace anyone who might have had contact with Mr Sawyer. So far, said Health Minister Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, about 70 people are being monitored. They include laboratory staff, airport contacts, three ECOWAS staff drivers, a liaison and protocol officer, two nursing staff and five passenger handlers, among others.
Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) formerly known as Ebola Haemorrhagic Fever (EHF) is a severe illness with a fatality rate of up to 90 per cent in an earlier outbreak but 60 per cent in the current epidemic. It can spread like wild fire. EVD first appeared in 1976 in two simultaneous outbreaks, one in a village near the Ebola River in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the other in a remote area of Sudan. It is currently one of the world’s most virulent diseases.
Ebola was introduced to the human population and transmitted through direct contact with the blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected animals or people. During an outbreak, those at higher risk of infection are health workers, family members and others in close contact with the infected persons. In Africa, infection occurs through the handling of infected chimpanzees, gorillas, fruit birds, monkeys, forest antelopes and porcupines found ill or dead in the rain forest. It has no known cure.
Typical signs and symptoms of Ebola infection include sudden onset of fever, intensive weakness, muscle pain, headache and sore throat. This, according to medical experts, is followed by vomiting, diarrhoea, impaired kidney and liver function. In some cases, the patient may present both internal and external bleeding. The incubation period of the disease from infection to onset of symptoms is between two to 21 days, they say. The patient becomes contagious once he/she begins to show symptoms. EVD can only be confirmed through laboratory tests.
Although the Nigerian healthcare system, given its putrefying state, may face challenges in containing the spread of Ebola and other viruses, we urge Nigerians not to panic. It is, however, important for all to reduce contact with high risk animals or their raw meats including those of bats, gorillas, monkeys etc.
Government, through public health officials and mass communicators, must embark on proper public enlightenment campaigns to sensitize Nigerians on the symptoms and preventive measures against contracting the disease. Government should also make proper logistic arrangements to cater for confirmed cases of Ebola infection. This may include efficient and prompt referral services to appropriate medical centres.
Persons placed under monitoring should be isolated and infected persons quarantined. Victims who have died of Ebola must be handled using strong protective clothing and gloves, and must be buried immediately. Airlines are advised to suspend flights to countries where the disease is ravaging its population. Government should not fail to close its borders if the disease tends towards becoming endemic in the country.