Ebola



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The Ebola virus can cause severe viral haemorrhagic fever (VHF) outbreaks in humans with a case fatality rate of up to 90%. Ebola first appeared in 1976 in two simultaneous outbreaks, in Nzara, Sudan, and in Yambuku, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and in a  village situated near the Ebola River, from which the disease takes its name.

Key facts

• The Ebola virus causes severe viral haemorrhagic fever (VHF) outbreaks in humans.
• Viral haemorrhagic fever outbreaks have a case fatality rate of up to 90%.
• Ebola haemorrhagic fever outbreaks occur in villages in Central and West Africa, near tropical rainforests.
• The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission.
• Fruit bats of the Pteropodidae family are considered to be the source of the Ebola virus.
• There is no treatment or vaccine available for either people or animals.