How to Prevent Ebola Virus Disease

Ebola virus disease (EVD) is part of a group of diseases called viral hemorrhagic fevers. The Ebola virus enters the body through cuts or scratches on the skin or through moist body surfaces such as in the eyes, nose, or mouth (mucous membranes). The virus attacks the body’s disease-fighting (immune) system and prevents the body from fighting the infection. EVD can damage the blood vessels and create problems in the blood clotting mechanism, causing the body to bleed. The kidneys and liver can also become badly damaged.

People who recover from EVD are resistant (immune) to the disease, but it is not known how long their immunity lasts.

How can EVD affect me?

EVD is a very serious disease and can easily spread to others (highly contagious). When the virus enters your body, you may have symptoms such as:

• A sudden onset of high fever followed by headache, backache, and bone and muscle aches.
• Vomiting or diarrhea, which cause loss of body fluid (dehydration).
• Stomach or chest pain.
• Unexplained bleeding and bruising. You may bleed from the eyes, ears, nose, gums, vagina, or rectum.

What can increase my risk?

EVD is found mainly in Africa. You are more likely to catch EVD if you travel to an area with a recent EVD outbreak. You are also more likely to catch EVD if you have had direct contact with a sick person:

• Who has been in an area with a recent EVD outbreak.
• Who has taken care of a person with EVD.

What actions can I take to prevent EVD?

Protecting oneself

There is no vaccine to prevent EVD. Take steps to prevent infection if you are traveling to an area with an EVD outbreak, are in contact with people who recently traveled to an area with an EVD outbreak, or are taking care of sick people in such areas.

• Avoid contact with the body fluids of a person who has EVD. This is the best way to prevent EVD. Body fluids include stool (feces), urine, blood, semen, vomit, saliva, breast milk, and sweat.
• Avoid objects that have been contaminated with infected blood or body fluids, such as needles, syringes, bedding, or clothing. It is not known how long the virus lives on objects.
• Wash your hands frequently with soap and water. If soap and water are not available, use hand sanitizer.
• Wear protective clothing.
• Avoid eating or touching meat from bats or primates (including monkeys) in areas of an EVD outbreak.
• Avoid sexual activity with anyone with a possible Ebola infection or who has recently recovered from EVD. It is possible to get EVD from contact with semen from a man who has recovered from EVD.

Protecting others

If you have been in Africa recently or have had contact with a person diagnosed with EVD and show symptoms of EVD:

• Do not go directly to a hospital or health care provider’s office. Call your health care provider or your local emergency services (911 in the United States). Tell them about your symptoms and that you may have Ebola. This information will help health care workers prepare for your visit so you can be diagnosed quickly and other people can be protected from catching the infection.
• Do not wait to see if you will get better. EVD can be life threatening. Treatment must be done in a hospital and is more effective when it is started early.
• Do not take public transportation.
• Stay away from people who are not wearing protective clothing.

Other precautions

If you have been exposed to the body fluids of a person with EVD, the following steps will be taken to prevent EVD from spreading to others:

• If you are at a hospital, safety measures (contact precautions) will be taken to prevent the infection from spreading to others. People who have or may have EVD are separated (isolated) from other patients in the hospital, and health care workers will wear protective clothing, gloves, masks, goggles, and boots to cover their whole body.
• You will be monitored carefully for signs and symptoms of EVD.
• Your temperature will be checked two times a day.
• You may be asked to stay in your home and keep away from other people.

If you develop a fever or other EVD symptoms, you will have a blood test to check for the virus. If you do not get sick after 21 days, you may resume your normal activities.

Can pets get EVD and spread it to people?

So far, there have been no reports of dogs or cats becoming sick with Ebola or spreading Ebola to people or other animals. If a dog or cat is exposed to the blood or body fluids of a person with EVD, work with veterinary and public health officials to determine what steps should be taken.

Where to find more information

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/about.html  
• World Health Organization: www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs103/en  

Summary

• Ebola virus disease (EVD) is part of a group of diseases called viral hemorrhagic fevers.
• The Ebola virus enters the body through cuts or scratches on the skin or through moist body surfaces such as the eyes, nose, or mouth.
• The best way to prevent EVD is to avoid contact with the body fluids of an infected person. Also, wash your hands often and wear protective clothing if you are in areas of outbreak.
• If you suspect that you have signs of EVD, call your health care provider or local emergency services and tell them that you may have been exposed to Ebola. This will speed up diagnosis and protect others from catching the infection.