Ebola
Ebola
The human body is an extremely complex
and intelligent machine that responds differently to different stimuli. One
cannot precisely predict how the human body will react to different infectious
diseases, since that depends on many factors such as environment and health.
One of these extremely dangerous diseases is Ebola, previously called Ebola
hemorrhagic fever. Ebola often causes death in both humans and animals alike.
According to CNN Health,
the first Ebola virus was detected in Africa in 1976 not far away from the
Ebola river, that is how it got its name. Despite what most people think, the
Ebola disease can be triggered by five different viruses. Four of these five
viruses have been detected to trigger the Ebola disease in both human and
animals. These four viruses
are “Zaire ebolavirus (EBOV), Bundibugyo ebolavirus (BDBV), Sudan
ebolavirus (SUDV), Taï Forest ebolavirus (TAFV) and Reston ebolavirus (RESTV)”
(CNN Health). The
fifth virus, the Reston virus, has been detected to cause Ebola in animals but
not humans. In addition, all five viruses come from the Filoviridae family,
stated by the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases.
Scientists suspect that fruit bats are the most likely natural
reservoir for Ebola; however, this has not been proven yet. Without that piece
of information (the identity of the natural reservoir of Ebola) scientists have
not been able to identify how the outbreak to humans begun. Another fact about the Ebola virus is that it
cannot be transmitted via air, in other words, the virus is not airborne, making
the virus “moderately
contagious”.
One characteristic that makes the Ebola virus extremely deadly is that it is
extremely efficient. In other words, a very small number of Ebola viruses can
trigger the deadly disease. Some scientists even believe that a single virus
might be able to cause illness. It is true that Ebola cannot travel through
air, however, it can be transmitted through body fluids and blood. Therefore,
when one comes in contact with an infected person, the infection might be
transmitted via blood and body fluids such as feces, urine, semen and vomit.
Indeed, the same goes for coming in contact with infectious animals as well.
Obviously, nurses who work closely with infected people in hospitals are more
prone to getting Ebola since they are usually in contact with contaminated objects
such as needles. In addition, family and friends are also likely to get Ebola
since they also take care of the ill, thinking that they just have a regular
fever. It is
extremely crucial to fully understand
how Ebola can get into the human body. Understanding that will help prevent
further spread of the deadly disease. Once the Ebola virus is outside, it can
get into the body of a new host by using broken sites of the skin or exposed
organs such as the nose, mouth and eyes. That is the reason why an advanced
health facility with Ebola patients will force their staff to wear protective
gear (disposable masks and gloves) that prevent the Ebola virus from reaching
these prone sites.
After knowing how Ebola is
transmitted, one should be educated about its symptoms. By knowing the symptoms
of Ebola one can make sure not to come in contact with people who show one or
more of the Ebola symptoms. Anna Easter reported that
symptoms of Ebola include diarrhea, vomiting, stomachache, fever (with body
temperature greater than
101.5°F or 38.6°C),
extreme headache, pain in muscles, “unexplained
bleeding or bruising”,
weakness, aches and breathing difficulties. The incubation period for Ebola,
the period of time that lies between the virus invasion and the first symptom
appearance, range between 2 to 21 days with an average of 8 to 10 days. An
interesting fact about Ebola is that the infected person is not able to
transmit the disease unless he/she shows symptoms of Ebola, in other words,
unless the incubation period is over. However, after a person is treated, he
will not be able to transmit the Ebola virus unless through semen. CNN Health
have pointed out that the Ebola virus has been found in the semen of treated
individuals up to three months after they completed their treatment. As
mentioned before, it is hard to predict how the body will react to certain
viruses. So the recovery from the Ebola virus depends widely on the patient’s immune system. Fortunately, people
who do recover from Ebola are immune to it for at least 10 years, because they
develop antibodies that will live for at least 10 years guarding their bodies
against Ebola.
Since Ebola was first detected in
Africa, African countries have not had enough time to prepare for it.
Therefore, Ebola outbreaks were recorded in the following countries, South
Africa, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia, Senegal, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of
Congo (DRC), Uganda and Republic of the Congo (ROC). The highest numbers of cases of infections
and deaths were recorded in, sorted in a descending order, Liberia, Sierra
Leone then Guinea. However, between those three countries, the highest deaths
to cases ratio was recorded in Guinea, with 2134 cases and 1260 deaths. Figure
1 compares the number of infection cases and deaths in six different countries,
including the United States. (data was provided by the CNN Health as of
November 23, 2014).
Early diagnosis of the Ebola disease
has not been easy, the primary reason is that Ebola’s early symptoms are common between
other different diseases such as malaria. Nevertheless, the main question that
should be asked when a person shows Ebola symptoms is “Has the person been around somebody
who is infected with Ebola?”
If the answer is yes, then the person must be isolated and further testing
should be performed immediately to confirm infections. Up to the current day,
there has not been a specific medicine or vaccine that could completely cure
Ebola. However, that does not mean that there is nothing that can be done with
an infected individual. Infected individuals are taken care of as soon as they
become diagnosed with Ebola. Things that can be done after diagnoses include,
balancing body salts, maintaining good blood pressure, maintaining good oxygen
levels and treating other symptoms. Time is a crucial factor when dealing with
Ebola, meaning that the earlier an individual is diagnosed with Ebola, the
greater the chance it is to be treated. Nevertheless, the hardship accompanied
with early diagnosis of Ebola is caused by not having special symptoms
specifically for Ebola. Therefore, it is usually misdiagnosed and time is
wasted as the virus continues to develop inside the host’s body, minimizing the successful
treatment chance.
Detecting Ebola is as important as treating
and preventing it. The first case of Ebola in the United States emerged in
Dallas, TX. According to Michael Zennie, Thomas Eric Duncan is the first
individual in the United States to show symptoms of the Ebola virus. Once he
arrived at the
hospital, the emergency room had an
instrument called “The
FilmArray BioThreat Panel”
that can detect the Ebola virus in less than an hour. Nevertheless, doctors did
not use that instrument because they did not get approval from the FDA to use
it for Ebola detection. However, they chose to use other less advanced
detection tests that took two days to show results. During those two days, Mr.
Duncan was taken care of in the hospital by two nurses. Those two nurses did
not wear the complete protective gear to prevent Ebola transmission, since they
had no idea if Mr. Duncan had Ebola or not. This led to two unfortunate
consequences, first, Mr. Duncan passed away due to Ebola virus, second, he
ended up transmitting the virus to the two nurses who were taking care of him
during the two days. If the FilmArray BioThreat Panel was used to detect the
virus, doctors would have used the extra time to treat Mr. Duncan. The
FilmArray BioThreat Panel development was funded by the military and developed
by BioFire Diagnostics to detect 27 different viruses. It simply works by
injecting a “hydration
solution”
and the sample from the patient’s
blood and then it runs its tests. The first step that the instrument uses is to
extract all nucleic acids from different cells in the blood sample. After that,
the extracted nucleic acids are purified for further testing. The last step is
to perform different stages of a test called PCR. This test is done
individually to detect any of the 27 different viruses, including Ebola. Then
the results are calculated within an hour. The FilmArray BioThreat Panel is
considered to be the fastest and most precise way to detect Ebola. FDA approval
has finally been acquired to use this instrument in Ebola detection. Currently,
hospitals are being equipped with it.
From my perspective, a biomedical
engineer can be thought of as the link between different disciplines. Since
biomedical engineers get to be briefly educated about all science subjects such
as physics, engineering, biology, chemistry and physiology, they can understand
engineers, biologists, chemists and physicists. Therefore, they can work in
developing projects by filling the gap between different fields. I, personally,
feel the importance of biomedical engineering as I learn more and more. The
main skill that I have been developing during the time I spent here at UCO is
problem solving. We are always confronted with different engineering problems
that we are required to solve. I also realized that being an engineer is not
about knowing how everything works. Instead, it is about having the confidence
that all problems have solutions to them. Therefore, the job of an engineer is
to fully understand and solve hard problems that could benefit mankind as a
whole. In order to achieve that goal, we are equipped with science and
different skills. Being in the principles of BME class was also one of the most
beneficial steps
that I had to take. It is always nice
to see all the physics and math that we had to learn applied to solve problems
related to the human body. This is an important step because we get to know how
the human body works, then apply what we learned to advance the technology that
will advance the public health. After all, this is the job of all engineers in
general, to care for the public welfare.
Works
cited
Easter, Anna. “Ebola.” U.S.
National Library of Medicine 102.12 (2002): 49-52. Print.
“Ebola
Fast Facts.”
CNN Health. Cable News Network, 26
Nov. 2014. Web. 3 Dec. 2014.
FilmArray.
Biofire Diagnostics, 29 Nov. 2014. Web. 3 Dec. 2014.
Comments
Post a Comment