Ebola virus disease: Essential clinical knowledge

Mahmoud Tawfik Khalafallah; Omar Ali Aboshady; Shaban Ahmed Moawed; Menna Said Ramadan

doi:10.4103/ajm.AJM_150_16

Avicenna Journal of Medicine, Table of Contents

CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Avicenna J Med 2017; 07(03): 96-102
DOI: 10.4103/ajm.AJM_150_16

REVIEW ARTICLE

Ebola virus disease: Essential clinical knowledge

Authors

Mahmoud Tawfik Khalafallah

Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Menoufia
Omar Ali Aboshady

Dalaton Primary Health Centre, Ministry of Health; Egypt

Clinical Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Menoufia

Student Research Unit, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Menoufia
Shaban Ahmed Moawed

Student Research Unit, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Menoufia
Menna Said Ramadan

Student Research Unit, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Menoufia

Abstract

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Abstract

Since its initial outbreak in 1976, Ebola virus disease (EVD) has affected thousands of people, causing severe illness with high mortality rates. In the absence of a vaccine or effective specific treatment, as well as the lack of early diagnostic and detective methods, the EVD outbreak has generated a significant worldwide health concern. Insufficient health-care system resources, deficient infection control measures, and the shortage of appropriate personal protective equipment acted as amplifiers of the outbreak extension, especially in poorly resourced and unprepared communities. Operating on the frontlines, health-care workers must be familiar, not only with the identification of the disease, but also with the ability to protect themselves and initiate the appropriate response. This review seeks to provide essential information required to identify and manage the disease, with an emphasis on pathogenesis, transmission, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. We conducted a literature search in MEDLINE/PubMed and Google Scholar using the following keywords: “Ebola, Ebola virus disease, Hemorrhagic Fever, Outbreak.” We included all types of publications. To augment our study, we searched the reference lists of identified reviews.

Keywords

Ebola (MeSH) - Ebola vaccines (MeSH) - Ebola virus (MeSH) - hemorrhagic fever

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References

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