• Below 25 years have 57% survival chance
• Study found incubation period was six to 12 days
• Patients who suffered weakness, dizziness and diarrhoea are likely to die
• WHO gives personal protective equipment guidelines
MORE reasons Sunday emerged why the fearless heroine of Nigeria’s success story against the deadly Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), Dr. Ameyo Adadevoah of First Consultant Clinic, Ikoyi, Lagos, aged 58, was among the eight Nigerians that succumbed to the virus.
A new study published Sunday in the New England Journal of Medicine concluded that EVD is more likely to claim the lives of those aged 45 or older.
The team’s work found that the younger a patient is, the more likely he or she is to survive, noting that the fatality rate for patients under 21 was 57 per cent, while for those aged 45 and above, the mortality rate soared to 94 per cent.
The report, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, estimated the incubation period of the patients they examined was six to 12 days - similar to that seen during the outbreak.
The study also said the higher the temperature recorded on admission to hospital, the more likely patients were to die from Ebola, adding that 80 per cent of the patients suffered headache, 66 per cent noted weakness, 60 per cent suffered dizziness, 51 per cent diarrhoea, 40 per cent abdominal pain and 34 per cent suffered vomiting but that only one patient was found to have suffered internal bleeding - one of the most deadly symptoms.
Meanwhile, as part of the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) commitment to safety and protection of healthcare workers and patients from transmission of Ebola virus disease, the apex United Nations (UN) health agency has conducted a formal review of personal protective equipment (PPE) guidelines for healthcare workers and is updating its guidelines in context of the current outbreak.
The WHO, in a statement yesterday, said these updated guidelines aim to clarify and standardise safe and effective PPE options to protect healthcare workers and patients, as well as provide information for procurement of PPE stock in the current Ebola outbreak. The guidelines are based on a review of evidence of PPE use during care of suspected and confirmed Ebola patients.
The WHO Director for Service Delivery and Safety, Edward Kelley, said: “These guidelines hold an important role in clarifying effective personal protective equipment options that protect the safety of healthcare workers and patients from Ebola virus disease transmission.
“Paramount to the guidelines’ effectiveness is the inclusion of mandatory training on the putting on, taking off and decontaminating of PPE, followed by mentoring for all users before engaging in any clinical care.”
Experts agreed that it was most important to have PPE that protects the mucosae – mouth, nose and eyes – from contaminated droplets and fluids. Given that hands are known to transmit pathogens to other parts of the body, as well as to other individuals, hand hygiene and gloves are essential, both to protÅect the health worker and to prevent transmission to others. Face cover, protective footwear, gowns or coveralls, and head cover were also considered essential to prevent transmission to healthcare workers.
“Although PPE is the most visible control used to prevent transmission, it is effective only if applied together with other controls, including facilities for barrier nursing and work organisation, water and sanitation, hand hygiene, and waste management,” says Marie-Paule Kieny, Assistant Director-General of Health Systems and Innovation.
• Study found incubation period was six to 12 days
• Patients who suffered weakness, dizziness and diarrhoea are likely to die
• WHO gives personal protective equipment guidelines
MORE reasons Sunday emerged why the fearless heroine of Nigeria’s success story against the deadly Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), Dr. Ameyo Adadevoah of First Consultant Clinic, Ikoyi, Lagos, aged 58, was among the eight Nigerians that succumbed to the virus.
A new study published Sunday in the New England Journal of Medicine concluded that EVD is more likely to claim the lives of those aged 45 or older.
The team’s work found that the younger a patient is, the more likely he or she is to survive, noting that the fatality rate for patients under 21 was 57 per cent, while for those aged 45 and above, the mortality rate soared to 94 per cent.
The report, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, estimated the incubation period of the patients they examined was six to 12 days - similar to that seen during the outbreak.
The study also said the higher the temperature recorded on admission to hospital, the more likely patients were to die from Ebola, adding that 80 per cent of the patients suffered headache, 66 per cent noted weakness, 60 per cent suffered dizziness, 51 per cent diarrhoea, 40 per cent abdominal pain and 34 per cent suffered vomiting but that only one patient was found to have suffered internal bleeding - one of the most deadly symptoms.
Meanwhile, as part of the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) commitment to safety and protection of healthcare workers and patients from transmission of Ebola virus disease, the apex United Nations (UN) health agency has conducted a formal review of personal protective equipment (PPE) guidelines for healthcare workers and is updating its guidelines in context of the current outbreak.
The WHO, in a statement yesterday, said these updated guidelines aim to clarify and standardise safe and effective PPE options to protect healthcare workers and patients, as well as provide information for procurement of PPE stock in the current Ebola outbreak. The guidelines are based on a review of evidence of PPE use during care of suspected and confirmed Ebola patients.
The WHO Director for Service Delivery and Safety, Edward Kelley, said: “These guidelines hold an important role in clarifying effective personal protective equipment options that protect the safety of healthcare workers and patients from Ebola virus disease transmission.
“Paramount to the guidelines’ effectiveness is the inclusion of mandatory training on the putting on, taking off and decontaminating of PPE, followed by mentoring for all users before engaging in any clinical care.”
Experts agreed that it was most important to have PPE that protects the mucosae – mouth, nose and eyes – from contaminated droplets and fluids. Given that hands are known to transmit pathogens to other parts of the body, as well as to other individuals, hand hygiene and gloves are essential, both to protÅect the health worker and to prevent transmission to others. Face cover, protective footwear, gowns or coveralls, and head cover were also considered essential to prevent transmission to healthcare workers.
“Although PPE is the most visible control used to prevent transmission, it is effective only if applied together with other controls, including facilities for barrier nursing and work organisation, water and sanitation, hand hygiene, and waste management,” says Marie-Paule Kieny, Assistant Director-General of Health Systems and Innovation.
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