Clinical Presentation of Patients with Ebola Virus Disease in Conakry, Guinea

Ebola virus disease emerged in West Africa in March of 2014. In this report, the clinical presentation of 37 patients with confirmed EVD in Guinea is described during the early stages of the outbreak. Ebola virus is one of three members of the Filoviridae family and comprises five distinct species. Infection with Zaire ebolavirus (EBOV) has historically resulted in the highest case fatality rate — up to 90%. 1 Outbreaks typically originate with introduction of the virus into humans from a wild animal reservoir, with subsequent human-to-human transmission, often fueled by nosocomial amplification in resource-poor settings. Aside from a single infection with Tai Forest ebolavirus, West Africa has never had an outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD). 2 , 3 The Republic of Guinea, on the west coast of Africa, has a population of approximately 11 million . . .