Ebola Should Be Easy to Treat

NEW YORK TIMES SUNDAY REVIEW   by Jeffrey Gettleman                                            Dec. 21, 2014

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone --
...Ebola, however much some of its symptoms conjure up a horror film, is usually shockingly simple to treat. The virus is swift and ruthless, hideous and creepy, causing some patients to have bloody vomit, bloody diarrhea or even — in severe cases — bloody eyeballs. Ebola is one of the handful of viruses than can trigger a hemorrhagic fever, with internal bleeding, but in most cases the biggest threat is dehydration, which can be addressed by clean water and basic drugs.

Isatu Sesay, 16, died of Ebola while her family waited in vain for an ambulance. Credit Daniel Berehulak for The New York Times

As Daniel Bausch, an infectious disease doctor at Tulane University, has said, “It’s not rocket science” — Ebola is as much about logistics as medicine. The key to defeating it is enough ambulances, enough hospital beds and a competent way to identify sick people, get them into care quickly before they infect others and then replenish the fluids they lose because of the virus.

This stands in stark contrast to the Somali famine, the endless wars in the Democratic Republic of Congo or South Sudan’s recent implosion — all extremely complex crises fueled by decades of reckless policies, regional intrigue and serious money to be made from chaos.

The fact that Ebola can be battled back so easily is what makes it so frustrating and depressing — and even at times maddening....

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http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/21/sunday-review/ebola-should-be-easy-to-treat.html