ALIKO DANGOTE DONATES N150MILLION TO FIGHT EBOLA IN NIGERIA

Africa's richest man Aliko Dangote has donated
N150million to help in the fight of the spread of the
Ebola virus in Nigeria.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Dangote
Foundation, Mrs Adhiambo Odaga announced this at
a media briefing at the Ministry of Health, Abuja on
Monday. She said the money will be available for the
establishment of an Ebola emergency operation
centre in Lagos.
“After bilateral discussion with the honourable
minister and his team, Dangote foundation has
funded the establishment of the Ebola emergency
operation in Lagos, that is being done through
grant from the foundation of just a little over
N150 million,” she said. Continue...
"The strategy that our chairman is deploying is
the strategy to respond and to commend
government for the effort, and to show that all
Nigerians are concerned. We will continue to
discuss with the ministry about what additional
support can be offered.
“And we also have been approached by several
parties who are interested in partnering with the
government, and we would continue that
discussion.”
Odaga relayed Dangote’s call to all Nigerians to join
the federal government in the fight against Ebola,
expressing optimism that the disease would be
contained.
“The choice of the emergency operation centre as
an investment for Dangote Foundation is based
on the fact that is the critical platform through
which the government is coordinating all that is
happening to ensure that the crisis is contained,”
she added.

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EBOLA: CANADA OFFERS 1000 DOSE OF EXPERIMENTAL VACCINE TO AFRICA

The Canadian Public Health Agency has offered to release 1000 dose of a made-in-Canada experimental Ebola virus vaccine known as VSV-EBOV which has never been tested on humans but has shown to be effective in the treatment of the disease in animals.


In a statement released yesterday August 12th, the Canadian Health Minister Rona Ambrose said the World Health Organization's Director general, Margaret Chan, has approved of the donation.


The Minister also revealed that Canada will be donating $185,000 to the World Health Organization for the prevention and control of the deadly virus in Africa. Canada has only 1500 of the experimental vaccine and would be sending 1000 of it to Africa. Continue...





"I was pleased to offer the experimental vaccine developed by Canadian researchers as a global resource to help fight this outbreak," she said, adding that between 800 and 1,000 doses would be donated to the WHO.

The Minister in the statement added that "Canada feels this experimental vaccine is a global resource, so in response we are sharing it with the international community, while keeping a small supply in Canada."


The news comes hours after the World Health Organization said a panel of experts advised that it would be ethical to use untested drugs and vaccines in this raging epidemic, which is several times larger than any previous outbreak.

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NIGERIA: HOW LAGOS NURSING MOTHER GOT INFECTED WITH EBOLA VIRUS - DOCTOR

A medical doctor has described how a nursing mother who is one of the confirmed cases of the Ebola virus in Lagos contracted the disease while attending her antenatal care at First Consultant Hospital in Obalende, Lagos where the first victim of Ebola virus in Nigeria, Patrick Sawyerr, died. The lady was confirmed to have the deadly disease after testing positive at the NNPC staff clinic on Muri Okunola street in the Victoria Island area of Lagos.

Speaking anonymously with Punch, the doctor said;
'The lady attended ante-natal at First Consultant prior to the arrival of the Liberian, Mr. Patrick Sawyer. She was delivered of her baby at the hospital after which she was discharged. A few weeks later, Mr. Sawyer came around and was attended to by health workers. He was first treated for malaria, then typhoid, before there was high index of suspicion. He tested positive for Ebola and died. Then the woman, who gave birth at the hospital came back to the hospital for her baby’s immunization. The nurses who attended to Sawyer also attended to her. When she visited the place again last week, she discovered the place had been shut down for proper fumigation as a means of control against Ebola.” he said. Continue...

Seeing that the hospital has been shut down, the lady who had started showing signs of fever proceeded to the NNPC staff clinic which was close by.
'She was first treated for Malaria. However, after some medical tests, there was a high suspicion of Ebola haemorrhagic fever. On Friday, the Lagos State’s emergency response team on Ebola virus came around and took her to the Infectious Diseases Hospital,” he added.

The management of the hospital after confirming she had the deadly virus immediately shut down the hospital indefinitely.


Confirming the doctor's report, the Medical Officer of Health, Iru-Victoria Island Local Council Development Area, Dr. Wale Akeredolu, said the woman's baby has been quarantined and is under surveillance
“The baby has also been quarantined to see if after the incubation period of two to 21 days, she would manifest the symptoms of Ebola.” he said

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SON OF AMERICAN EBOLA PATIENT SAID SHE'S "SMILING, EVEN JOKING"

The American woman who was infected with the Ebola virus while working with a Christian aid group in Liberia is getting better and is even smiling, her son said today.

Speaking with NBC's Today Show, Jeremy Writebol said his mother, Nancy Writebol, 60, who was evacuated from Monrovia last week and was wheeled on a stretcher into a special isolation unit at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, has gotten physically better


"When she came in on Tuesday last week, we were really concerned that she wasn't going to make it. To see her wheeled out of the ambulance and in, I was on the floor sobbing."
"We've seen her get physically better, her eyes brighten up, smiling, even joking a little bit" he said.

Jeremy, who says he sees his mum twice a day through a hospital window, said doctors told him they are cautiously optimistic she'll recover. Nancy is the second patient to use experimental drug, Zmapp

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EBOLA: NIGERIANS BEG OBAMA TO GIVE INFECTED LAGOS NURSE THE VACCINE

Nigerians on different social media platforms on Saturday asked President Barack Obama to give a vaccine, ZMapp, being developed in the United States to treat a Nigerian nurse, Justina Ejelonu, reportedly infected with Ebola.

 On such websites as Facebook and Twitter, the petitioners begged Obama to release the vaccine to Ejelonu and other Africans suffering from the virus. The petitions were made on the White House website. Ejelonu, who is one of those that were infected with the Ebola virus after treating the Liberian victim, Patrick Sawyer, has said she did not have direct contact with Sawyer’s body fluids. The deadly virus, which leads to death in humans within days from infection, is transmitted through sweat, urine, blood, and other fluids from the body. Ejelonu recounted her encounter with Sawyer in a report on a website, www.southeastnigeria.com.

 According to the website, she said she had checked his vitals and helped him with food because he was too weak, and that the mode of transmission could be from touching the same surfaces as the Liberian. She said, “I never contacted his fluids. I checked his vitals, helped him with his food (he was too weak). I basically touched where his hands touched and that’s the only contact — not directly with his fluids. “At a stage, he yanked off his infusion and we had blood everywhere on his bed. But the ward maids took care of that and changed his linens with great precaution. Every patient is treated as high-risk. If it were air borne, by now wahala for dey (there would have been trouble). I still thank God.” Ejelonu added that the workers’ uniforms and Sawyer’s bedding were burnt afterwards, saying the staff were under surveillance and off-duty till August 11. She said, “Our samples have long been taken by the World Health Organisation and so far, we have been fine. Kudos to my hospital management because we work professionally with every patient considered as high-risk — that’s the training.” The health worker noted that if it were a public hospital, the outcome might have been different, adding that she was however grateful to the Lagos State Government and the Federal Government for their support.

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DR. KENT CURED OF EBOLA DISEASE

Dr. Kent Brantly, one of the two Americans who contracted Ebola in Liberia, received a dose of an experimental serum before he was flown to the United States for treatment, an aid organization that he works with said on Sunday. The aid organization which is a Christian group called 'Samaritan’s Purse' said it was grateful for news that Brantly’s condition is improving. Earlier, the group had said there was only enough serum for one dose and that it went to Nancy Writebol, the other American infected.

Writebol is to be flown to Atlanta this week and treated at Emory University Hospital, where Brantly is also being treated. "There is no known cure for Ebola"; Dr. Thomas Frieden- director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said he does not know what treatment the group may be using and that There are several in development.

Brantly’s wife, Amber, said on Sunday that Brantly is in good spirits. She said in a statement that the family was “rejoicing over Kent’s safe arrival” and confident that he is getting the best possible care.

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EBOLA: FG , LAGOS DELEGATIONS VISITS PROPHET T.B JOSHUA TO AVERT SPREAD

As part of efforts to prevent spread of the
deadly Ebola virus disease into the country, a
federal government and Lagos State health
delegation yesterday visited the General
Overseer of the Synagogue Church of All
Nations, Prophet Temitope Joshua, to
explore ways of averting the spread of the
epidemic in the country.
In the meeting with the cleric, the delegation
led by the Lagos State Commissioner for
Health, Dr. Jide Idris, offered to work with the
health team of the church in the areas of
technical assistance, medical advice and
training to ensure that no victim of the deadly
disease came to the church from any of the
affected countries undetected.
Idris said the delegation decided to pay the
visit to the church because of the recognition
that the church is an International Christian
Centre whose congregation comprise people
from all over the world, including the
countries of the West African sub-region
where the Ebola disease is presently ravaging
the populations.
He said the visit is one governments strategy
of sensitizing faith-based organizations on
the need to cooperate with the government
to prevent the spread of the disease in the
country, by educating their adherents to
report health issues to medical experts.
The commissioner explained that the federal
and the Lagos State government are working
hard on how to prevent a spread of the vi rus
into the country
Idris said the delegation felt that because the
church had some people from the West
African sub-region as members and because
of the influx and population of the
congregation there might be need to check
and also raise the awareness level on the
disease in the church.
He said, We have our strategies that we
intend to share with you. Again we need to
know the resources you have here because
whether it is one or two cases, if they are
allowed to get out, it is a major problem. We
are here to work together on how to contain
this disease.
Also speaking, the director, Centre for
Disease Control, Professor Abdulsalami
Nasidi, said that the visit was to inform the
Synagogue leader of the deadliness of the
Ebola virus and to ensure that it does not
escape into the country.
He added that it had become such a big
problem in the sub-region that it was already
affecting the economies of the countries
involved.
Nasidi, an epidemiologist and virologist,
described the visit as a positive engagement
mission. We are here to engage you
positively. We know the powers of this House
and your powers and we are duty-bound to
protect you and your congregation, he said.
He particularly singled out the countries of
the West African sub-Region Liberia, Sierra-
Leone and Guinea as the greatest worry of
the Government at the moment because they
are the countries that have already been
affected by the deadly disease.
In his response, Prophet Temitope Joshua
promised to work with the government to
ensure that the disease did not spread into
the country.
The cleric revered for his healing powers said
he would put some measures in place to
ensure that people from the already affected
countries do not enter Nigeria.
One of such measures, he said, is to visit any
of the countries when necessary rather than
allow their residents come into Nigeria.
He also promised to suspend some of his
major Church healing programmes for a few
weeks adding, I am ready to work with you. I
love my country and I will be ready to work
with you. Even if it is a rumour, there is need
to secure our environment to ensure that it is
safe.

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LIBERIA SHUTS SCHOOLS TO TACKLE EBOLA OUTBREAK

Liberia’s government has announced that it is
closing down all schools across the country
to stop the spread of the deadly Ebola virus.
Some communities would be placed under
quarantine as well, President Ellen Johnson
Sirleaf said.
Non-essential government workers will be
sent home for 30 days and the army
deployed to enforce the measures.
The number of people killed by the virus in
West Africa has now reached 672, according
to new UN figures.
The BBC’s West Africa correspondent Thomas
Fessy says treatment facilities have
reportedly been overwhelmed in the Liberian
capital Monrovia.
Ebola virus disease (EVD)
Symptoms include high fever, bleeding
and central nervous system damage
Fatality rate can reach 90%
Incubation period is two to 21 days
There is no vaccine or cure
Supportive care such as rehydrating
patients who have diarrhoea and vomiting
can help recovery
Fruit bats are considered to be virus’
natural host
Some wards have already filled up, forcing
health workers to treat some patients at their
homes.
President Sirleaf said that Friday 1 August
would be a non-working day in Liberia to
allow for the disinfection of all public
facilities.
“All non-essential staff – to be determined by
the heads of ministries and agencies – are to
be placed on 30 days’ compulsory leave,” she
added.

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LAGOS GOVERNMENT LOCATES 59 CONTACTS WITH DEAD LIBERIAN VICTIM

The Lagos State Government said on Monday
that it had identified no fewer than 59 people
who had contacts with Mr Patrick Sawyer, the
Liberian who died of Ebola Virus in the state.
Dr Jide Idris, the Commissioner for Health,
said at a news conference in Ikeja that the
contact tracing became imperative to
ascertain any possible transmission of the
virus by the victim.
Idris said the identified contacts comprised
44 hospital and 15 airport contacts, including
the Nigerian Ambassador to Liberia.
He said 20 of the contacts had been screened
and that none of them had so far been found
to be infected with the virus.
The commissioner, however, said the
contacts did not include those he might have
been with on his flight to Nigeria on July 20,
as the airline had yet to release the
passenger manifest for investigation.
“The airline manifest has not been provided
by the airline as at the time of this report and
therefore, the precise number of passenger
contacts is yet to be ascertained, especially as
two flights were involved (Monrovia-Lome
and Lome-Lagos).”
The commissioner urged Nigerians not to
entertain fears about Sawyer`s case as the
state and Federal Governments were doing
everything possible to prevent any risk to the
country.
Idris said that the deceased’s body had been
decontaminated, using 10 per cent sodium
hypochlorite and cremated with the
permission of the Government of Liberia.
“A cremation urn has been prepared for
dispatch to the family. The vehicle containing
the remains have also been decontaminated
while the hospital in which he died on July 25
has been demobilised .”
Idris said that the state Ministry of Health had
designated an isolation ward at the Infectious
Disease Hospital, Yaba, for case
management, adding three other centres
were under way.
The commissioner urged residents to report
people with abnormal cases of bleeding and
fever to the appropriate authorities for
intervention, as high fever with bleeding from
all body openings were symptoms of the
disease.
Idris also urged residents to always keep
their environments clean and maintain good
personal hygiene as Ebola virus spreads
easily in dirty environments.
Also speaking, Prof. Abdul-Salami Nasidi, the
Director, National Centre for Disease Control
(NCDC) warned against the consumption of
bats and monkeys as these animals had been
established to be the original sources of
Ebola.
“This is time for those bat-eating and
monkey-eating communities to be careful
now. Ebola started from the eating of
Chimpanzees. How the virus got to the
monkey, nobody knows yet.
“But this is the time to be careful about the
eating of monkeys and bats. The Ebola threat
is high in West Africa and people should start
taking precautions.”
In a remark, Prof. Oyewale Tomori, the
President of the Nigerian Academy of
Science, also warned Nigerians against the
unsupervised burial of people who died from
suspected Ebola case.
He said 40 per cent of cases in high risk
countries were transmitted from victims`
bodies, stressing that an Ebola corpse was
deadlier the patient.
On he part, Mrs Yewande Adeshina, the
Special Adviser to the Governor on Public
Health, urged traditional healers to
collaborate with the government in checking
Ebola threats by reporting suspicious cases
for the right intervention. (NAN)

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NEWS: YES, EBOLA CAN BE TRANSMITTED THROUGH SEX AND SALIVA

The Ebola Virus, known as Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), and formerly referred to as Ebola Haemorrhagic Fever is speedily gaining grounds across West Africa. So far, it has reportedly killed 632 people and has had it’s first death case here in Nigeria.



Ebola can be transmitted from human to human. In the Journal of Infectious Diseases, health experts dedicated to research on the virus, made these assertions after several tests:

“Although Ebola virus (EBOV) is transmitted by unprotected physical contact with infected persons, few data exist on which specific bodily fluids are infected or on the risk of fomite transmission. Therefore, we tested various clinical specimens from 26 laboratory-confirmed cases of Ebola hemorrhagic fever, as well as environmental specimens collected from an isolation ward, for the presence of EBOV. Virus was detected by culture and/or reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction in 16 of 54 clinical specimens (including saliva, stool, semen, breast milk, tears, nasal blood, and a skin swab) and in 2 of 33 environmental specimens.We conclude that EBOV is shed in a wide variety of bodily fluids during the acute period of illness but that the risk of transmission from fomites in an isolation ward and from convalescent patients is low when currently recommended infection control guidelines for the viral hemorrhagic fevers are followed.”
What this clearly means is that the virus can be gotten through unprotected sex and kissing infected people. In addition, if one comes in contact with bodily secretions found on needles, scalpels, soiled clothes and linens, there is high risk of infection.

Other ways one can contact the disease are through contact with a contaminated objects, butchering an infected animal and touching the dead body of someone who has died from the disease.

Fruit bats are also natural hosts of the virus, according to the World Health Organization. For people who enjoy eating bats, they have been warned to desist. Also, researchers believe humans are infected by handling dead or alive infected animals (like chimpanzees, gorillas and forest antelopes). People are advised to avoid bush meat.

Ebola Kills
Out of the 410 suspected and confirmed cases of Ebola in Guinea, 310 suspected deaths have occurred. Of the 196 suspected and confirmed cases in Liberia, 116 suspected deaths have occurred. Of 442 suspected and confirmed cases in Sierra Leone, 206 suspected deaths have occurred. Ebola kills 80 to 90 percent of the time, says Encyclopaedia Britannica.

Diagnosis is Hard in the Early Stages
Because the first symptoms of Ebola could be signs of other conditions like skin rash and red eyes, it is usually hard to diagnose. However, tests can be run in a hospital.

General Symptoms
Fever
Headache
Joint and muscle aches
Weakness
Diarrohea
Vomiting
Stomach pain
Lack of appetite

Some patients sometimes experience:
A Rash
Red Eyes
Hiccups
Cough
Sore throat
Chest pain
Difficulty breathing
Difficulty swallowing
Haemorrhaging inside and outside of the body

Symptoms sometimes appear from 2 to 21 days after a person gets infected but the most common is 8-10 days.

Ebola Has no Cure or Vaccine
Treatments and vaccines are being tested right now but so far, nothing has been made available for the cure or prevention of Ebola. There is only supportive therapy for infected persons and this consists of maintaining blood pressure and oxygen levels, and maintaining adequate fluid and electrolyte balance.

Some People Do Recover From Ebola
The percentage of recoveries is very low, most times just 1 out of 10 reported cases makes it out alive. It is yet uncertain why some people are able to fight it and others cannot.

How to Prevent Infection of Ebola

The Guardian listed out the following measures:

Avoid direct and indirect contact with bodily fluids and tissue of infected persons.
Frequent Hand-washing and use of hand sanitizer.
Fruits and vegetables must be washed properly before eating; avoid bush meat and even suya, which the source is not known.
Avoid shaking of hands and hugging of people, at least for now.
Practise safe sex
Watch children and even adults to discourage them from licking their fingers before washing. Nail biting should be avoided.
The use of gloves and appropriate personal protective equipment must be used in taking care of ill patients. Proper handling of corpses, which may involve a modification of burial practices, is also a preventive step.

Are Countries Outside West Africa at Risk?
Earlier this year, a woman flying into Canada from Congo fell ill and was hospitalized. News soon spread that she had contacted the virus, even though she hadn't. There have not been any reported cases but people feel the disease is only a plane ride away, just the same way it got into Nigeria.

“It is not impossible that an Ebola outbreak could occur in North America", says Ann Marie Kimball, an epidemiologist with the School of Public Health at the University of Washington, Seattle. “We live in an age in which the travel time is shorter than the incubation for a disease. You can get infected, go on a plane for 13 or 14 hours and still have two to three days to get sick.”

Historically, Kimball adds that people would travel by ship and their symptoms would show up by the time they reached port and they could be quarantined. But its is not the same with air trips “Given travel time today, we may see an increasing number of people becoming ill when they arrive in this country, which makes disease control impossible.”

“The possibility that this deadly virus has reached North America focuses attention on the need to fortify our ability to detect and handle outbreaks of infectious diseases,” Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., the ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Foreign Operations, said in a statement.

“It is only a matter of time before the Ebola virus reaches North America, whether this time or the next. Any infectious disease — even the world’s most deadly virus — is only an airplane flight away from our shores.”

For now, the best way to avoid being infected is to employ all measures to keep yourself protected.

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