The 2014/15 outbreak of Ebola virus disease is the largest ever reported of this deadly, highly infectious, hemorrhagic disease since its initial discovery in humans in 1976. The current outbreak was first recognized in March, 2014 in Guinea and has since crossed international boundaries into Sierra Leone and Liberia where case numbers have now surpassed those recorded in the country of origin. Due to international travel of infected individuals, both medical professionals and non-professionals, the virus has also been introduced and caused smaller outbreaks in Mali, Nigeria, Spain and the United States. A worldwide response was launched. Like the infectious agent, this approach crosses interdisciplinary, geographical, cultural and socio-political boundaries and includes research, professional and public education, clinical care and respectful, safe disposition of the remains of those who died from the illness. In this paper, we aim to reduce fears of the unknown and encourage continued efforts to conquer the epidemic by describing the nature of the infectious agent, by providing a brief overview of its history, scope, and impact.
Prof. dr hab. Janusz T. Paweska & Dr. Petrus Jansen van Vuren Centre for Emerging and Zoonotic Disease of the National Institute for Communicable Diseases, Johannesburg, South Africa