Ebola virus disease in West Africa: a call to overhaul health systems in sub-Saharan Africa

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (7) ◽  
pp. 873 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel Munjita ◽  
Mwaba Chileshe ◽  
Sikaniso Mutemwa
Keyword(s):  
West Africa ◽  
Health Systems ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Ebola Virus Disease ◽  
Sub Saharan

scholarly journals Ebola Virus Disease in sub-Saharan Africa: Addressing Gaps to Handle Future Outbreaks

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. p28
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Armstrong-Mensah ◽  
Bianca Tenney ◽  
Victoria Hawley
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Leone ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Democratic Republic Of Congo ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Ebola Virus Disease ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Preparedness Plan ◽  
The North ◽  
Sub Saharan

Between 2014 and 2016, the three West African countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone experienced the deadliest Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak in sub-Saharan Africa. Two years later, a tenth epidemic recurred in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), specifically in the North Kivu and Ituri provinces, which lasted until June 2020. Though they occurred in different countries, a review of how the EVD outbreaks in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the DRC were handled by the respective country governments, reveal gaps in disease detection, response and action due to lack of surveillance, an EVD preparedness plan, and weak health systems. This perspective discusses the EVD outbreaks in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the DRC, their effects, and draws attention to gaps that need to be addressed by these countries in order to be better prepared to handle future outbreaks. Acting on the proposed recommendations will not only benefit Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the DRC in the future, but will be of benefit to EVD susceptible countries in sub-Saharan Africa, as we live in a global community where diseases are no respecters of boundaries.

Quality improvement of health systems in an epidemic context: A framework based on lessons from the Ebola virus disease outbreak in West Africa

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucia Brugnara ◽  
Cyril Pervilhac ◽  
François Kohler ◽  
Mohamed Lamine Dramé ◽  
Sylvia Sax ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Improvement ◽  
West Africa ◽  
Health Systems ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Disease Outbreak ◽  
Ebola Virus Disease

scholarly journals Syndromic detectability of haemorrhagic fever outbreaks

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emma E. Glennon ◽  
Freya L. Jephcott ◽  
Alexandra Oti ◽  
Colin J. Carlson ◽  
Fausto A. Bustos Carillo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Syndromic Surveillance ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Ebola Virus Disease ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Case Definitions ◽  
Clinical Criteria ◽  
Health Infrastructure ◽  
Sub Saharan

AbstractLate detection of emerging viral transmission allows outbreaks to spread uncontrolled, the devastating consequences of which are exemplified by recent epidemics of Ebola virus disease. Especially challenging in places with sparse healthcare, limited diagnostic capacity, and public health infrastructure, syndromes with overlapping febrile presentations easily evade early detection. There is a clear need for evidence-based and context-dependent tools to make syndromic surveillance more efficient. Using published data on symptom presentation and incidence of 21 febrile syndromes, we develop a novel algorithm for aetiological identification of case clusters and demonstrate its ability to identify outbreaks of dengue, malaria, typhoid fever, and meningococcal disease based on clinical data from past outbreaks. We then apply the same algorithm to simulated outbreaks to systematically estimate the syndromic detectability of outbreaks of all 21 syndromes. We show that while most rare haemorrhagic fevers are clinically distinct from most endemic fevers in sub-Saharan Africa, VHF detectability is limited even under conditions of perfect syndromic surveillance. Furthermore, even large clusters (20+ cases) of filoviral diseases cannot be routinely distinguished by the clinical criteria present in their case definitions alone; we show that simple syndromic case definitions are insensitive to rare fevers across most of the region. We map the estimated detectability of Ebola virus disease across sub-Saharan Africa, based on geospatially mapped estimates of malaria, dengue, and other fevers with overlapping syndromes. We demonstrate “hidden hotspots” where Ebola virus is likely to spill over from wildlife and also transmit undetected for many cases. Such places may represent both the locations of past unobserved outbreaks and potential future origins for larger epidemics. Finally, we consider the implications of these results for improved locally relevant syndromic surveillance and the consequences of syndemics and under-resourced health infrastructure for infectious disease emergence.

scholarly journals Characterisation of the T-cell response to Ebola virus glycoprotein amongst survivors of the 2013–16 West Africa epidemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
T. R. W. Tipton ◽  
Y. Hall ◽  
J. A. Bore ◽  
A. White ◽  
L. S. Sibley ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
T Cell ◽  
West Africa ◽  
Cell Response ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Medical Condition ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
T Cell Response ◽  
Ebola Virus Disease ◽  
Cell Phenotype ◽  
T Cell Epitopes

AbstractZaireebolavirus (EBOV) is a highly pathogenic filovirus which can result in Ebola virus disease (EVD); a serious medical condition that presents as flu like symptoms but then often leads to more serious or fatal outcomes. The 2013–16 West Africa epidemic saw an unparalleled number of cases. Here we show characterisation and identification of T cell epitopes in surviving patients from Guinea to the EBOV glycoprotein. We perform interferon gamma (IFNγ) ELISpot using a glycoprotein peptide library to identify T cell epitopes and determine the CD4+ or CD8+ T cell component response. Additionally, we generate data on the T cell phenotype and measure polyfunctional cytokine secretion by these antigen specific cells. We show candidate peptides able to elicit a T cell response in EBOV survivors and provide inferred human leukocyte antigen (HLA) allele restriction. This data informs on the long-term T cell response to Ebola virus disease and highlights potentially important immunodominant peptides.

scholarly journals Comparative phylogeography of African fruit bats (Chiroptera, Pteropodidae) provide new insights into the outbreak of Ebola virus disease in West Africa, 2014–2016

2016 ◽  
Vol 339 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 517-528 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandre Hassanin ◽  
Nicolas Nesi ◽  
Julie Marin ◽  
Blaise Kadjo ◽  
Xavier Pourrut ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
West Africa ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Ebola Virus Disease ◽  
Fruit Bats ◽  
Comparative Phylogeography

scholarly journals Seroprevalence of Ebola virus infection in Bombali District, Sierra Leone

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadege Goumkwa Mafopa ◽  
Gianluca Russo ◽  
Raoul Emeric Guetiya Wadoum ◽  
Emmanuel Iwerima ◽  
Vincent Batwala ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Immune Response ◽  
Virus Infection ◽  
West Africa ◽  
Sierra Leone ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Asymptomatic Infection ◽  
Ebola Virus Disease ◽  
Efficient Immune Response ◽  
Ebola Virus Infection

A serosurvey of anti-Ebola Zaire virus nucleoprotein IgG prevalence was carried out among Ebola virus disease survivors and their Community Contacts in Bombali District, Sierra Leone. Our data suggest that the specie of Ebola virus (Zaire) responsible of the 2013-2016 epidemic in West Africa may cause mild or asymptomatic infection in a proportion of cases, possibly due to an efficient immune response.

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