Ebola: Checking against the threat of another health emergency

Public health emergencies are critical subjects that constructively call the attention of all and sundry to bear. The outbreak of life threatening epidemics have been known to be with men for centuries. While the sources of some of these epidemics were easily identified and established, there are some whose sources have been difficult to unravel by scientific studies. The most recent epidemic which has come to establish its footprint on historical lanes of reckon is the COVID-19 pandemic. It is clear to notice that the source of the epidemic which has ravaged the entire world, still remains oblique. Rather than any root cause of the virus nailed with scientific proof, the search for the source of the virus has remained more controversial without any established finding.

The character of the COVID-19 virus is such that has left no part of the world, not even the advanced world without heavy winds of troubles. Nigeria unfortunately has had her unpleasant experiences from the virus. The virus which is apparently believed to have been an import epidemic from the western world with its first discovery noticed in China, have had its way into Africa as a continent and Nigeria in particular. The projection of the ravaging effects the virus was speculated to have on Africa was no less admirable, given the experience in the advanced world where even with the virility of their health infrastructures the virus dealt a huge blow on them. While African Countries have continued to grapple with the reality of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is another virus whose source has been found to have its root from the African soil. The Ebola virus which was a deadly virus that had a fearful blow between 2013 and 2015 in West Africa, has started to show off signs of resurfacing most recently.

Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) or Ebola hemorrhagic fever (EHF), is a viral hemorrhagic fever of humans and other primates caused by ebolaviruses. Signs and symptoms of the virus have been observed to typically start between two days and three weeks after infection  with fever, sore throat, muscular pain, and headaches. Vomiting, diarrhoea and rash are known to usually follow, along with decreased function of the liver and kidneys. At this stage, some patients begin to bleed both internally and externally. The disease according to record has a high risk of death, killing 25 to 90 percent of those infected, with an average of about 50 percent. This is often due to low blood pressure from fluid loss, and typically follows six to 16 days after symptoms appear. The virus is known to spread through direct contact with body fluids, such as blood from infected humans or other animals. Spread may also occur from contact with items recently contaminated with bodily fluids. Spread of the disease through the air between primates, including humans, has not been documented in either laboratory or natural conditions. According to laboratory studies, semen or breast milk of a person after recovery from EVD may carry the virus for several weeks to months. Fruit bats are believed to be the normal carrier in nature, able to spread the virus without being affected by it.

The disease was first identified in 1976, in two simultaneous outbreaks in a South Sudanese town, Nzara, and the other in Yambuku, Democratic Republic of Congo, a village relatively near the Ebola River from which the disease takes its name. EVD outbreaks occur intermittently in tropical regions of sub-Saharan Africa. From 1976 to 2012, the World Health Organization reports 24 outbreaks involving 2,387 cases with 1,590 deaths. The largest outbreak to date was the epidemic in West Africa, which occurred from December 2013 to January 2016, with 28,646 cases and 11,323 deaths. It was declared no longer an emergency on 29th March, 2016. Other outbreaks in Africa began in the Democratic Republic of Congo in May 2017, and 2018. In July 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the Congo Ebola outbreak a world health emergency.

New concerns over the recent cases in Guinea Conakry and the Congo DCR, is another health matter calling for serious concern presently. The troubles presently confronting Nigeria by the woes of COVID-19 is too harsh on the Country which make it unimaginable to consider a wave of another epidemic of health emergency befalling the Country. The laxity which was demonstrated over the COVID-19 pandemic at the height of massive spread from other parts of the world, led to an avoidable influx of the virus and its unfortunate spread in Nigeria. As the news of a new outbreak of the Ebola virus begins to hit the ground, it is paramount for the Nigerian government to act responsively and proactively.

On a note of concern, the Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire on Monday stated that the Health Ministry was observing the Ebola disease outbreak in Guinea Conakry among other diseases of public health concern around the world. Ehanire who made the note at the weekly press briefing of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 in Abuja said: “Nigeria’s Port Health Services have been put on alert on land, sea and air borders and all major hospitals have also been put on notice to alert health workers to have a keen index of suspicion and to check patient travel history, especially at Outpatient Departments, and report concerns to infectious disease focal persons and the state epidemiologists without hesitation. Stricter infection prevention and control measures, including personal protective measures, must be taken immediately there is reason to suspect. Nigeria is willing to send experienced volunteers from our Centres of Excellence on viral haemorrhagic fever, to support WHO measures to contain Ebola resurgence in our West African subregion. It is important to protect the subregion from the catastrophic burden of dealing with two severe diseases of public health concern. We shall work with the West Africa Health Organisation and WHO on strategies to bring this outbreak under control and shall provide regular updates on preparedness, containment and response measures in due course.”

It is important that the Government lead the course of enhancing surveillance at every entry point in accordance to responding to the recent outbreak of Ebola in neighbouring countries, particularly in Guinea and the Congo DCR. The state of circumstances in the Country position an unimaginable sensation for the Country to be caught in the web of two public health emergencies. The necessity for the Government to act proactively is paramount. The bleeding state of the nation amidst several defective social menaces brewing to a heightening level is a source of concern. It is therefore essential that the Government plays its role of mustering the strictest measures possible, towards checking against another hazardous public health danger. More importantly, the necessity for all citizens to dutifully play their role to critically check against Ebola is imperative. Public health matters are subjects that demand the sensitivIty of all. It is, thus, paramount for the masses to work harmoniously alongside the directional course of the Government with complementary efforts.