Should I Be Worried? A Quick Guide to Ebola

By Jordan Bissell on August 5, 2014

If you are even slightly involved in or aware of current politics, you have probably been hearing a lot about Ebola recently.  I’ve heard many complaints about bringing the infected Americans to Emory in Atlanta for treatment and study, but most people aren’t really aware of what is going on.  If you’d like a quick briefing on Ebola, read on.

1)  It’s a disease.

Although it sounds kinda like the newest probiotic drink or the leafy green that will soon overshadow kale, Ebola is actually a disease.  Officially called the Ebola virus, it broke out in West Africa and has been garnering concern ever since.  American doctor Kent Brantly contracted the virus while aiding victims overseas, and has since been brought back stateside for treatment.

2)  It’s not airborne.

Atlantans are in a tizzy over treating the infected doctors at Emory, but what they don’t realize is that the disease can only spread through contact of bodily fluids.  Although watching The Walking Dead may seem to instill a heightened fear of unknown viruses in Atlantans’ minds, such an outbreak will surely not be occurring with the Ebola virus.  The infected patients have been housed in special isolation units within the hospital, and–as a result–the average citizen stands no chance of contracting the virus.

Unfortunately, Sanjay Gupta, CNN’s chief medical correspondent, believes that it may soon be a widespread issue: “So I think it’s going to happen. We’re going to see Ebola around the world. But I think it’s not going to turn into lots of mini outbreaks.”

3) It has no cure.

Ebola has a fatality rate of almost 90%, and has yet to be cured.  Due to the heretofore containment of the virus to West Africa and its subsequent isolation, doctors know almost nothing about the disease, and therefore did not pour time and resources into developing a cure.  Its symptoms are not highly unusual: fever, intense weakness, muscle pain, headache and sore throat.

You needn’t be too worried as long as you don’t wander into Emory’s infectious diseases wing.  Just hope and pray that Dr. Brantly and the other infected people don’t experience too much pain.

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