In last class, we discussed Ebola hemorrhagic fever in Liberia. According to the article, The World Health Organization (WHO) declared that Liberia was now free from Ebola virus. Liberia was the country where the most people died of Ebola, but WHO confirmed that 42 days, which is twice the maximum incubation period, had passed since the last death was confirmed. Though Liberia conquered Ebola through a collective effort, it is said that the outbreak will have a long-term impact on the weak economy of Liberia. In addition to this, Guinea and Sierra Leone, which is the country next to Liberia, now continue to fight the outbreak of Ebola. We can say that travelling around South Africa is still dangerous.
I am so interested in the outbreak of Ebola because I have the Infectious Disease Surveillance Center, which is the only place that can study Ebola in Japan, in my city. When the outbreak happened, I felt as if it were my own affairs. In discussing, I wondered why the outbreak suddenly happened even if Ebola had not been a big problem for a long time. A student in my group said that viruses seemed to change its nature slightly and to affect human beings. However, we could not know the actual cause of the outbreak.