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Lagos State government yesterday alerted its residents on a pandemic virus disease known as Ebola, saying the outbreak in the state could be averted by maintaining high standard of personal and environmental hygiene at all times.
The state’s commissioner for health, Dr Jide Idris who made this known in a statement made available to journalists urged the residents to imbibe the habit of washing their hands often with soap and water.
Idris explained that Ebola virus disease is caused by a virus which natural reservoir of virus is not completely known, stressing that fruit bats have been considered to be the natural host of the virus.
According to him, “Ebola virus can be spread through, close contact with the blood, body fluids, organ and tissues of infected animals; direct contact with blood, organ or body secretions of an infected person. The transmission of the virus by other animals like monkey and chimpanzee cannot be ruled out”.
The commissioner noted that those at the highest risk of the disease include health-workers; and families or friends of an infected person who could be infected in the course of feeding, holding and caring for them.
He stressed that Ebola virus disease should be suspected in persons who develop bleeding from the body openings like the mouth, nose, rectum and ear; a close contact with person who is infected; or health worker who had treated either suspected or confirmed infected person.
“Early symptoms of the disease include fever, headache, chills, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, sore throat, backache, and joint pains. Later symptoms include bleeding from the eyes, ears and nose, bleeding from the mouth and rectum, eye swelling, swelling of the genitals and rashes all over the body that often contain blood. It could progress to coma, shock and death”, he explained.
Idris noted that there is no specific treatment for Ebola virus disease presently.
Source: Leadership
