Korean Society of Epidemiology, Epidemiology and Health, (36), p. e2014014, 2014
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Ebola virus disease (hereafter Ebola) has a high fatality rate, and currently lacks a treatment or vaccine which have proven safety and efficacy, and thus many people are fearful of infection. In West Africa, as of Aug 13, 2,127 patients across four countries have been infected with the Ebola virus over the past ninth months. Among these patients, approximately 1 in 2 has subsequently died from the disease. In response, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the Ebola outbreak in West Africa to be an Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) . However, Ebola is only transmitted from patients that already exhibit the symptoms of the disease, and infection only occurs upon direct contact with the blood or body fluids of an Ebola patient. Consequently, transmission of the outbreak can be contained through careful monitoring for fever symptoms among persons who have visited, or come into contact with, persons from the site of the outbreak. Thus, patients suspected of exhibiting symptoms characteristic of Ebola should be quarantined. To date, South Korea is not equipped with the special containment clinical units and biosafety level 4 (BSL-4) facilities required to deal with fatal virus like the Ebola. Therefore, it is necessary for South Korea to make strategies to the outbreak by using present facilities as quickly as possible. It is also imperative that the government establish suitable communication with its citizens to prevent the spread of uninformed fear and anxiety regarding the Ebola outbreak.