Student 24/7 Aug 2014 | Page 23

Know your stuff: Ebola Sam Mothopeng WHAT IS EBOLA Ebola virus disease (EVD), also known as the Ebola hemorrhagic fever, is a serious, often fatal disease in humans and nonhumans primates such as gorillas, monkeys, chimpanzees, and fruit bats that kills up to 90% of people who are infected with it. It is marked by fever and severe internal bleeding, and it spreads through contact with infected body fluids. Other ways to get Ebola virus include touching contaminated needles or surfaces. In some cases, people who cared for, or were close to those infected with Ebola, may also stand a chance of being infected by the virus, if they do not look after themselves. WHAT CAUSES EBOLA? Ebola virus is caused by a virus belonging to the family called Filouiride. Scientists have identified five types of